Brambletye house; or, Cavaliers and roundheads, a novel

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE;

CAVALIERS AND ROUNDHEADS.

A NOVEL.

BY ONE OP THE

AUTHORS OF " THE REJECTED ADDRESSES/

" Now universal England getteth drunk

For joy that Charles her monarch is restor'd;

And she, that sometime wore a saintly mask,

The stale grown vizor from her face doth pluck,

And weareth now a suit of morris hells,

With which she jingling goes through all her town and villages.

Lamb's John Wood-cil .

IN THREE VOLUMES.
VOL. II.

I *

LONDON:
HENRY COLBURN, NEW BURLINGTON STREET.

1826.

PR

7 87
V, P

LONDON :
PRINTED BY S. AND R. BENTLEY, DORSET STREET.

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

CHAPTER I.

" Among themselves the tourney they divide,
In equal squadrons ranged on either side ;
Then turn their horses' heads, and man to man,
And steed to steed oppos'd, the justs began."

DRYDEN.

ON crossing the frontiers of France, Sir John
and his son had an opportunity of observing the
extreme misery of the peasantry, who in addi-
tion to the gabelle, and other taxes and impo-
sitions by which they were already oppressed,
were subject to such perpetual depredation
from foreigners and free-booters of all the con-
tending parties, that those who were not already

VOL. II. B

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

ruined by contribution and pillage, found it
prudent to present an appearance of the most
squalid wretchedness, as their only security
against further exactions. Leaving these forlorn
borderers, like corn between the upper and
nether mill-stones, to be ground and crushed by
the collision of the two nations, they pushed
forward for Paris, at which capital they duly
arrived. The Baronet had provided himself
with letters to Sir Richard Browne, an envoy of
the King's, who still resided at that city, though
not recognised as such by the French govern-
ment. In obedience to the dictates of Cromwell
in the late treaty, they had ordered the English
monarch out of the French territories, giving
him a small supply of money, which was quickly
wasted ; and making him large promises for the
future, which had never been performed. In
this emergency, the Spaniards, then at war with
the Protector, invited the wandering court into
Flanders ; where the Duke of York, at the head

s

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

of a few motley regiments, mostly Irish, had
accompanied Don John to the relief of Dun-
kirk, as we have already shown ; while his royal
brother established his necessitous, though gay
and joyous, court at Bruges.

Sir Richard Browne, under whose care it was
his father's intention to place Jocelyn, willingly
undertook that office ; declaring, however, that
his own stay at Paris was rendered by political
circumstances extremely uncertain; especially,
since the arrival of Cromwell's ambassador at
the French court ; while he was in daily appre-
hension of an arrest, for debts incurred in the
service of the King, from whom he had not
received sufficient even to pay the rent of his
house. As long, however, as he should remain,
he promised his good offices; adding, that
Jocelyn should join the studies and military
exercises of two or three youths of condition,
whom the convulsed times had occasioned to be
sent to Paris, and whose education he had been
B 2

4 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

equally commissioned to superintend. To the
establishment of these young men in the Faux-
bourg St. Germain, he was accordingly intro-
duced ; and his father, after promising to corres-
pond with him regularly, and giving him a world
of good advice, particularly that he should
attend closely to his military exercises, and never
go near NolFs rascally Roundhead ambassador,
shook him heartily by the hand, bade him
adieu, and set off on his return to Bruges.

Just at the dangerous period of incipient
manhood, gifted with a noble, generous, and
kindly temperament, but of strong passions, and
inflexible in his purposes, was Jocelyn thus
left to himself in a dissipated capital, without
parental guidance or any efficient control, to
assist him in forming the mouTd of which his
now ductile mind was to receive the permanent
impression. His young companions, equally
free from all restraint, except the equivocal
authority of Sir Richard Browne, and the lax

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. O

discipline of their French tutor, were little dis-
posed to set him any very instructive example ;
it may easily be imagined, therefore, that the
whole party devoted themselves more sedulously
to amusement than to their studies; and fre-
quented balls and theatres more punctually than
the lecture-room or Sir Richard's chapel, where
the English liturgy was still read twice a week.
In obedience, however, to his father's injunc-
tions, Jocelyn applied himself strictly to his
military exercises; and his duty being in this
instance seconded by inclination, he soon eclipsed
all his competitors ; being not less admired for
the singular comeliness of his person, than the
dexterity and grace with which he went through
all the evolutions of the manege, particularly in
the mastery of the great horse. In the academy
of Monsieur du Plessis, where were kept nearly
, a hundred brave horses, all managed to the
great saddle, he not only perfected himself in
the language, by associating with the young

6 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

French nobility who frequented that establish-
ment, but took lessons in fencing, dancing, and
music,' as well as occasional instructions in forti-
fication and the mathematics ; so that if he ne-
glected the mere abstruse parts of learning, he
was, at least, qualifying himself to become an
accomplished cavalier and a good officer.

By frequenting this establishment he had al-
ready formed acquaintance with several distin-
guished families, both French and English, in
whose houses he was a welcome visitant, and
thus beguiled, in some degree, the loneliness of
his situation. The number of his associates
was now about to be increased by an occurrence
which had considerable influence upon his future
destiny. One fine morning of the summer, he
had wandered with a book into the gardens of
the Luxemburg Palace, situated in the imme-
diate vicinity of his residence, whose stately
marble fountains, terraces, groves, parterres,
grottoes, and umbrageous alleys, had often en-

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

abled him to wile away an idle hour in admi-
ration of their various attractions. Upon this
occasion, which was a public holiday, the formal
and somewhat melancholy effect of the gloomy
shades and trim embroidery in which the gar-
dens were distributed, was relieved by the gay
and motley appearance of the company. In
some of the darker walks were seen melancholy
friars in the habits of their different orders,
slowly pacing up and down, or gathered into
little parties, their robes mingling with the
shade of the trees, and allowing nothing but
their bald heads to be visible ; at the extremity
of the same alley were officers, gay ladies, and
noble gallants, whose rich dresses and steel-
hilted swords glittered in the sun ; here upon a
bench were studious scholars, with eyes riveted
to their book ; there in a verdant alcove were
lovers whispering to one another; and on the
grass-plots around were a motley company of
both sexes, amusing themselves at all sorts of

"> BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

.sports, singing, playing upon the guitar, or
forming little sets of graceful dancers, who
tripped merrily upon the sward to the rural
sound of the pipe and tabor.

Having amused himself some time in con-
templating this diversified scene, Jocelyn strolled
to a pool of water at the extremity of the enclo-
sure, where the Duke of Orleans kept a number
of tortoises. A singularly beautiful youth, ap-
parently a few years younger than himself, and
whom he instantly recognized by his dress and
appearance for a fellow countryman, had taken
up one of these animals to examine it ; while a
French gentleman in splendid clothes was de-
siring him, in rather arrogant and offensive
terms, to replace it in the water, express orders
having been given against touching them. Either
not choosing to obey so imperious a mandate,
or not understanding the voluble terms in which
it was conveyed, the youth retained the tortoise
in his hand, looking up at the same time in the

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 9

Gaul's angry face with a smiling wonderment
that seemed to increase his agitation. When
Jocelyn, however, volunteering the office of in-
terpreter, explained to him what was required,
the youth said he would instantly comply if
the request were civilly and temperately made.
This reasonable condition Jocelyn stated with
all imaginable courtesy to the Frenchman, who
instead of acceding to the proposition, fell foul
of the mediator, even proceeding so far in his
wrath as to brandish, in a menacing manner, a
little black baguette which he held in his hand.
The inflammable temperament of his opponent
was kindled in a moment. Snatching the up-
lifted wand and snapping it across his knee, he
put one foot behind the Frenchman, as he con-
tinued angrily advancing, and at the same time
giving him a smart push upon the chest, he
rolled backwards upon the ground, breaking his
sword in his fall, and distributing a cloud of
scented pulvilio from his peruke. He rose,
B 5

10 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

however, in a twinkling, and ran off in a trans-
port of rage, calling for the surveillans and the
guards. — At this juncture an old Frenchman
who had witnessed the whole transaction came
up, and informing them that their antagonist
was the young Duke of Anjou, pointed to a
side door, by which he recommended them to
make an immediate escape, if they did not wish
to be arrested, and pay a visit of indefinite du-
ration to the Bastille.

Deeming it prudent to adopt this advice, they
made the best of their way into the streets,
walking at a brisk pace in the direction of the
river. During their progress the handsome
stranger, after thanking Jocelyn for his inter-
ference, and expressing a hope that it would not
lead him into trouble, informed him that his
own name was James Crofts, that he resided
at the Cardinal's palace with his father Lord
Crofts, who was in the train of Henrietta Maria,
the Queen Mother of England, and invited him

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

11

to go and claim his lordship's protection, should
the recent occurrence be attended with any un-
pleasant results. By this time they had reached
the banks of the Seine, and induced by the
warmth of the day, as well as by the example of
others, they undressed and went to bathe. To
this fortunate chance they probably owed their
escape from an arrest that might have termi-
nated very unpleasantly, for they had hardly
entered the water when they saw a party of sur-
veillans and servants in the royal livery, hasten-
ing forwards for their apprehension ; but not
dreaming of finding the fugitives in the middle
of the stream, they hurried along its banks, and
were presently out of sight. Determined to
prolong their bath until their pursuers should
have abandoned the search, Jocelyn, who was
an expert swimmer, remained sporting in the
deep water, when he was suddenly seized with
the cramp, and finding himself sinking was
obliged to call out for help. Although he pos-

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

sessed not so perfect a mastery of the element,
his companion was still a tolerable swimmer, and
striking instantly forward to his assistance, suc-
ceeded in extricating him from the danger, by
supporting him into shallow water at the immi-
nent risk of his own life. They now dressed
themselves with all speed, went to their respec-
tive homes, and both being cautioned to keep
the house for a few days, the untoward ren-
contre at the Luxemburg Palace, passed over
without any other consequence than its having
suddenly established a friendship between the
two young men, which being cemented by con-
geniality of age and temper, as well as by a
sense of service mutually conferred and received,
soon rendered them almost inseparable compa-
nions.

A considerable time elapsed before Jocelyn
received any tidings of Sir John, from whom,
however, there at length came a letter, announc-
ing in terms of the most boisterous, rampant,

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 13

and immeasurable glee the death of the Pro-
tector, loading him with an abundance of post-
humous abuse, and enclosing for his son's
recreation a scurrilous ballad on the subject,
entitled a Dialogue between Old Noll and
Charon. He proceeded to state, that the court
were all in high spirits; that money already began
to grow more abundant in the increased hopes
of a Restoration ; and that he had been thereby
enabled to make a remittance for his use, as he
intended still to leave him in Paris until the
affairs of England should assume a more settled
form. Another long interval of many months
brought a second epistle from the Baronet, who
endeavoured to excuse his silence by reminding
his son, that he would at any time much rather
wield a lance and tilt at an opponent, than han-
dle a pen to answer a correspondent. His pre-
sent missive, couched in not less exuberant
triumph than the last, conveyed the glorious
tidings of the Restoration, with all the rejoic-

BfcAMBLETYE HOUSE.

ings, addresses, firings of salutes, illuminations,
tergiversations, prostrations, and intoxications
by which the people had testified the delirium
of their delight. So - extravagant, and at the
same time, so universal had been their apparent
satisfaction, that the King had observed with
his usual pleasantry — " Surely it can be no
body's fault but my own that I have stayed so
long abroad, when all mankind have been wish-
ing me so heartily at home/' In conclusion, the
Baronet stated his belief that he had drunk the
King's health until he made some inroads upon
his own, since he was laid up with an attack of
the gout ; gave an account of the horrible dila-
pidations committed upon Brambletye House in
his absence ; expressed his apprehensions that
he should be involved in a lawsuit for the re-
covery of his property, which had been sold by
the committee of sequestration, and promised
to recall his son as soon as this most vexatious
affair, and certain other domestic difficulties,

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 15

the nature of which he did not explain, should
be concluded and removed.

Time, however, rolled on without any re-
demption of this pledge ; and Jocelyn, in the
mean while, had not only perfected himself in
the French language, and made himself master of
the guitar, then the fashionable instrument, but
had more sedulously prosecuted his other studies
and exercises ; while his form developing itself
as favourably as his mind, had now assumed the
full and fine symmetry of manly beauty. In his
visits to Lord Crofts he had for some time past
remarked a singular change in the demeanour
of all parties towards his young friend, who was
treated with a marked deference, even by his own
father, that little assorted with paternal au-
thority:— the Queen Mother admitted him to all
her parties, comporting herself towards him
as if he were upon a footing of equality and
friendship ; and the officers of the household,
though they might wonder at the cause of this

16 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

familiarity, took their cue from their mistress,
and eagerly tended a homage of which the Queen
set the first example. Nor was the object of this
deference less changed than the mode of his
treatment. His beautiful figure was displayed
to the best advantage by splendid clothes and
rich decorations ; he had a greater command of
money, which he squandered as lavishly as it was
supplied; and the quick apprehension of youth
suggesting to him that there must be some
secret grounds for the high distinctions he re-
ceived, he was not backward in adapting himself
to his supposed dignity by a more consequential
carriage, and a certain air of hauteur, which
was pronounced arrogance by some who thought
it unwarranted by his rank and station : while
the Queen Mother had been heard to remark
that nature and blood would disclose themselves
in spite of all the restraints of circumstance.
Various and shrewd were the guesses elicited by
this random observation, which confirmed those

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 17

who heard it in the prudence of paying court to
the young favourite.

Fortunately for the preservation of his in-
timacy with Jocelyn', who was little disposed to
admit any assumptions of superiority, the young
man preserved in all their intercourse the same
footing of frank and familiar equality, which
had distinguished the commencement of their
friendship ; and, indeed, upon one occasion of
exhibition before the court, voluntarily placed
himself in an inferior station to Jocelyn. Louis
the Fourteenth, then in the prime of youth and
beauty, and himself a perfect adept in all the
accomplishments of chivalry, to whose sports he
was passionately addicted, had some time before
published a notice to all princes and knights,
according to the ancient formula of invitation,
that upon a specified day he meant to commence
a series of carousals at Paris, to consist of justs,
tilts, and a tournament with clashing of swords,
in the presence of ladies and damsels, and

18 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

under the customary regulations. Prodigious
bustle and interest had been excited by this an-
nouncement ; arrangements were made by the
court for celebrating the festival with a magni-
ficence that should eclipse all former precedent ;
the Place Carousel in the Louvre was fitted up
for the courses with extraordinary splendour ;
and every individual who was to figure in this
royal entertainment, seemed resolved to equip
himself with a brilliancy worthy of the occasion,
and of the lavish expenditure of the monarch.
Armour of all sorts was instantly put into busy
requisition ; cuirasses of Milan steel, inlaid with
gold or precious stones ; gorgeous casques, em-
bossed or sculptured by Benvenuto Cellini ;
swords of Damascus, Toledo, or Ferrara ; gor-
gets, cuisses, gauntlets; all were ferreted out
from their repositories, and furbished up for
selection ; while many a long lance was taken
down from its rest, and poised by the intended

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 19

combatants, that they might decide upon the
proper weight and length.

Nor were the ladies of the court, and others
who had obtained the enviable privilege of
being admitted into the galleries, less soli-
citous to do justice to the occasion, as well as
to their own charms, by the gallant bravery of
their decorations. Silks and satins, plumes,
diamonds, and jewellery, with all the para-
phernalia of the female toilette, kept every
heart in a constant flutter of agitation, so diffi-
cult was the choice, and so great the competi-
tion with which each fair candidate for admi-
ration would necessarily have to contend.

Sir Guy Narborough, an English knight,
hitherto unrivalled at these sports, came to
. Paris upon the occasion, and had selected
James Crofts, on account of his great personal
comeliness, for his principal squire. He was in
search of another, every combatant being re-

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

quired to have two of these attendants, when
the youth suggested that his friend Jocelyn,
from his superior height, age, and skill, was
better qualified than himself for the office of
principal squire, which he was willing to re-
sign in his favour, and would content himself
with the station of the second. For this
purpose they called upon Jocelyn, who was
not less flattered by the preference, than de-
lighted at an opportunity of witnessing, and
even figuring in a spectacle, of which all Paris
was absolutely mad to obtain a glimpse. Pro-
ceeding immediately to the Manege, Sir Guy
was delighted with his manner of going through
his exercises, and appointed a meeting at the
same place every morning to practise their evo-
lutions, taking upon himself the task of equip-
ping both his pages in an elegant suit of half-
armour.

Intense was the public curiosity, and inde-
scribable was the individual anxiety, as the

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

important day approached which had so long
absorbed the thoughts and conversation of the
Parisians. They who had the distribution of
tickets for admission into the courts and gal-
leries were flattered and besieged as if they held
the keys of Paradise ; they might dictate their
own terms for the obtainment of this paramount
distinction ; princes became supplicants ; duch-
esses were humble solicitors for their friends ;
and scandal scrupled not to assert that some,
who had been long and hopeless wooers to their
fair mistresses, immediately softened their ob-
durate hearts by the presentation of this irre-
sistible card. At length the long expected
morning arrived, ushered in by a cloudless sun,
as if heaven itself were anxious to add splen-
dour to a scene already emblazoned with all the
magnificence of earth. When the sound of
trumpets and kettle-drums gave notice that the
procession was about to commence, every street,
window, cornice, projection, and house-top,

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

through which it was to pass, became thickly
studded with heads, whose eager eyes glittering
in the sun, looked like the countless dew-drops
that hang upon the forest-leaves as they sparkle
in the first rays of morning.

The knights of the carousal, formed into
four parties or quadrilles, and attended by their
squires, pages, and footmen, with kettle-drums
and trumpets, commenced the procession. Each
quadrille was distinguished by its own colours
and the emblazoned cognizance of the illus-
trious knight who had been chosen to lead it ;
and each was enriched with such a glistering
gorgeousness of decoration, that it appeared, as
it passed, to wrest the palm of admiration from
its predecessor. When Jocelyn, however, and
his young companion encountered the public
eye, equipped in plain half-armour, without
helmets on their heads, (for Sir Guy had in-
sisted, that they should carry them in their
hands during the procession) it seemed as if

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 25

the very plainness of their trappings became
them better than all that could have been
achieved by 'the most sumptuous ornaments.
Gold, silver, and steel, plumes and priceless
jewels, had been profusely displayed by others ;
magnificence and art had done their utmost.
Nature was now to assert her supremacy, and
to make the superiority of her beauty be felt
as well as seen. The symmetry of these two
unadorned figures, and the comeliness of their
fine faces, shaded by their dark clustering locks,
sent a thrill to every bosom ; whose effect was
testified by the brightened eyes that were rivetted
to them as they passed, and by the buzz of ad-
miration that followed their career.

A salvo of cannon, shortly after, announced
that the King and his party were about to enter
the great court of the Carousal. First, came a
band of Swiss on foot, habited in black velvet
toques, led by two gallant cavaliers, in scarlet-
coloured satin, and followed by the Grand

24 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

Provost, wearing in his cap a panache of heron
feathers, with a diamond bandeau, and sur-
rounded by twelve little Swiss boys with hal-
berds. Then came the grandees and nobility,
magnificently attired and mounted, the whole
troop being covered with gold, jewels, and rich
caparisons, followed by trumpeters and heralds
in blue velvet, and the King's squires bearing
the swords and prizes which were to be dis-
tributed among the successful combatants. To
these succeeded the royal servants and body
guard ; and lastly, appeared the King himself,
mounted on a beautiful Arabian, whose housings
were studded with crosses of the order of the
Holy Ghost, and Fleur de lis. The monarch,
in compliment to the occasion, wore a corslet of
steel blazing with diamonds, with a mantle of
the richest embroidery, and carried his plumed
casque in his hand, courteously saluting the
ladies and acclamators, who filled the air with
shouts of " Viveleroi!"

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

25

The King and his whole court being seated
upon the scaffoldings that had been erected in
the square, the kettle-drums and trumpets out-
side the lists sounded for the commencement
of the courses, which consisted in the first
instance, of running at the ring, or tilting at the
Saracen's Head; whoever carried away the four
heads being saluted with a flourish from all the
instruments. Combats by individuals and by
companies succeeded to this sport ; and he who
had been victor the greatest number of times in
each quadrille, being proclaimed such by sound
of trumpet, was escorted to the temporary throne
of Mademoiselle, the daughter of the Duke of
Orleans, who distributed the prizes, which ter-
minated the first day's entertainment.

The second day's ceremony was of a more im-
portant and interesting character, the King re-
serving to himself the distribution of the prizes ;
and the combat between the four victors, by two
and two, armed cap-a-pie, being of a much

VOL. II. C

J2b BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

more serious and perilous nature. Every thing
having been arranged in the place du Carousel
with the same magnificence and solemnity as
before, the trumpet sounded to command silence
and attention, while a herald proclaimed the
names of the four champions. These consisted
of Sir Guy Narborough, a Bohemian Baron,
and two French Marquisses ; all of whom
paraded on horseback round the course, while
the ladies in the balconies and galleries selected
each a favourite knight, and made little bets
with one another upon the success of their
chosen cavalier. The order of combat being
decided by lots, the two French noblemen found
themselves opposed to each other as openers of
the field. Taking their stations accordingly,
the trumpets were about to sound, and their
lances were already couched, when the King
holding up his hand forbade the battle to pro-
ceed, and sent a herald to summon the parties
into his presence. " Sir Knights !" said the

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

Monarch, with a severe look as they stood before
him — " we have been informed, that you have
mutually agreed to divide whatever prizes either
of you may obtain. Is this so ?"

Both knights signified assent.

" Then, gentlemen," resumed the King in a
sterner voice, " you have presumed to pervert
the sole object with which I bestow them. Un-
earned by the wearer and unvalued for the
donor's sake, such distinctions are merely vulgar
baubles. Glory is the knight's best guerdon ;
he should weigh his badges of achievement in
the scale of honour, not value them with the
sordid calculation of a pedlar. When an ancient
Roman had conquered a kingdom, he felt him-
self amply rewarded by a few leaves of laurel ;
and it was by this disinterested love of fame,
that they were enabled to subdue the world.
Here, gentlemen, is a golden spur for each,
that each may wear it upon that side of his body
where the knightly feeling predominates. And
c2

28 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

\

here," continued the King, snapping a diamond
hiked sword across his knee, and tossing the
fragments towards the intended combatants,
" here is a sword, which you may apportion
between yourselves, when you have settled which
is to be the huckster and which the nobleman.
Gentlemen, you wished your prizes to be shared.
You are gratified. You may retire."

Covered with confusion at this public and
severe rebuke, the crest-fallen knights withdrew
silently from the royal presence, and quitting
the lists, hastened to conceal their disgrace by
mingling with the crowd ; while a respectful
murmur of applause ran round the assembly, in
approbation of the King's conduct. There were
now but two combatants left, whose conflict was
therefore anticipated with a deeper and more
condensed interest. The Bohemian Baron, a
man of large stature, and who had shown that
he possessed activity commensurate with his
strength, wore a dark steel armour, damascened

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 29

all over with wavy lines of light blue, and en-
riched with gold bosses ; his casque being sur-
rounded with an open-mouthed dragon, but
without device or feathers. Sir Guy Narborough
was equipped in burnished steel, inlaid with
gold ; and his glittering helmet, in whose front
was emblazoned his family motto, was tipped
with a small plume of white feathers. Both
had approved themselves proficients in every
exercise of chivalry, and opinion seemed equally
divided as to the probability of their success ;
for though the Bohemian had the advantage in
personal vigour, his antagonist was considered
to have better experience in these rude en-
counterings.

Attended by their respective squires, both
parties had now taken their stations, when, at
the sound of the trumpet, which was the signal
for the charge, Sir Guy's spirited horse reared
and leapt forward with such a sudden spring,
that he jerked the lance out of its rest, and ac-

30 BBAMBLETYE HOUSE.

cidentally striking it to the earth with his hoof,
galloped forwards as he had been accustomed to
do in former tiltings. No sooner had Jocelyn
perceived the accident, than darting to the spot
with a speed scarcely inferior to that of the ani-
mal, he snatched up the weapon, and ran rapidly
after Sir Guy, who was at the same time check-
ing his almost ungovernable steed, and looking
round, with extended hand, to receive the lance.
Taking an ungenerous advantage of this un-
guarded and defenceless moment, the Bohemian
spurred forward, and tilting at him on the op-
posite side, just as Sir Guy was leaning over to-
wards his squire, easily unhorsed him, and threw
him to the ground with considerable violence.
Clamour and confusion instantly pervaded the
whole assemblage, some calling out that it was
a base blow, and ought not to be allowed ; others
supporting the Bohemian, and crying, that it
was good and warranted law of battle. Crofts
had run up to assist Sir Guy, who seemed to be

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 31

sorely bruised, while Jocelyii, feeling the lance
still in his hand, and wound up to one of his
passionate impulses by his indignation at such
an unmanly attack, ran after the steed, which
was still caracoling wildly round the ring, seized
the reins, vaulted into the saddle, placed his
lance in the rest, wheeled round, and called out
to the Bohemian, in a loud and angry voice, to
put himself upon his guard .

At this most unexpected renewal of the con-
test, silence was instantly restored ; many, who
were standing up, suddenly reseated themselves,
and all waited the issue with a breathless im-
patience. Although the Baron had already
shown that he was by no means a scrupulous
antagonist, he would probably have declined the
encounter with an opponent only half armed and.
unprovided -with a casque of any sort, but that
the impetuosity and hostile demeanour of Joce-
lyn allowed him no time for parley or compro-
mise. He therefore couched his weapon, and

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

prepared for the onset. Jocelyn urged his horse
to its full speed, and lowering his head to the
off-side of the animars neck as he approached,
contrived to avoid the Bohemian's lance, at the
same time directing his own so fortunately, that
it fixed itself in the dragon's mouth of his ad-
versary's helmet, dragging him backwards from
his horse by the violence of the concussion, while
the casque, wrenched from its fastenings as he
fell to the earth, remained transfixed upon the
lance.

Apparently unconscious of the applauses with
which the whole circus rang at this achieve-
ment, Jocelyn rode round to that part of the
lists, whither Sir Guy had been conveyed, and
dismounting from his steed, presented to him
the lance with the trophy at its head. Fresh
acclamations were now heard, and Jocelyn acci-
dentally looking up to the gallery immediately
above him, was struck by the singular beauty of
two large lustrous black eyes gazing intently

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 33

upon him. So utterly was he absorbed by this
vision, that he remained for some moments as it
rivetted to the spot, until the lovely object of
his admiration, covered with blushes at the
marked attention she had excited, drew sud-
denly back. In the hurry of this movement, a
small white satin scarf, detaching itself from her
neck, fell upon Jocelyn's shoulders, when, with
a respectful bow of acknowledgment, although
the occurrence was purely accidental, he wound
it gallantly round his left arm, and passed on.
He was engaged in paying attentions to Sir Guy,
and receiving congratulations from the ladies,
who showered down white gloves, ribbons, and
favours, upon the spot where he stood, when
a herald arrived to order his immediate attend-
ance at the royal gallery.

" Your name is Compton," said the Monarch,
as he stood before him — " and you have ap-
proved yourself to be a worthy kinsman of Sir
William Compton, who, we remember to have
c 5

34 BEAMBLETYE HOUSE,

heard, would cry with indignation, even as a
child, that he could not share the dangers of his
brothers when they went out to battle. We ad-
mire your spirit, but we must vindicate the rules
of our carousal. Without being qualified by
knighthood, or entered as a regular combatant,
you have presumed to constitute yourself a
principal. For this offence we do adjudge you
to be committed as a prisoner to the circle
wherein you stand for the next half hour ; while
in acknowledgment of your valour we present
you with the well-earned spurs, and invest you
with the sword, which we doubt not you will ap-
prove yourself right worthy to wield." — So say-
ing, he passed a rich baldric over his shoulders,
to which was suspended a diamond-hilted sword,
with buckles of gold.

An artist himself would hardly have imagined
a finer subject for the pencil than Jocelyn pre-
sented at this moment, his face flushed with
recent exertion, his eyes sparkling with triumph,

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 35

his redundant locks scattered in a becoming
confusion, his gallant baldric and diamond-hilted
sword contrasting with his plain half-armour,
and his faultless figure appearing to give a dig-
nity to the royal prizes instead of receiving it
from them. After conversing with him for a
few minutes in the most condescending manner,
the Monarch ordered his fellow-squire to be sent
for, that he might receive some tidings of Sir
Guy Narborough, in whose mischance he seemed
to be considerably interested. As Crofts was
escorted towards the royal gallery, the Queen
Mother was observed to whisper a few words in
the King^s ear, who smiled, and exclaimed aloud
— " Is he indeed ? Truly, he carries it in his
looks." After having made particular inquiries
concerning Sir Guy, and expressed his satisfac-
tion that his injuries were not more serious, he
dismissed Crofts with a present of a diamond
ring from his own hand, bidding him take his
seat in a box which had been appropriated to

36 ERAMBLETYE HOUSE.

some of the junior nobility. These youngsters
at first objected to his admission, but a herald
from the King, who had observed the altercation,
and the unanswerable argument of " Le Roi le
veut," soon brought them to submission, though
not without exciting a good deal of whispering
and surprise among the adjacent galleries.

The four quadrilles that had figured in the
first 'day's sport now marched in procession
round the ring, after which they executed the
comparse, and various other evolutions of
chivalry ; the entertainment being concluded by
a kind of military dance, in which the time was
marked by the clashing of swords. At night
there was a grand ball at the palace, to which
Jocelyn was invited, and had the honour of
dancing with one of the most distinguished
beauties of the court. From that day he be-
came the fashion, or rather the rage, in Paris.
The handsome young Englishman, which hence-
forth became his appellation, was courted, pur-

BRAMBLKTYE HOUSE.

sued, fete a la folie, no ball or entertainment
being held to be perfect or distingue which did
not derive a lustre from his presence. This hot
fit would probably have been soon succeeded
by a cool one ; for every body knows that the
Parisians are as volatile arid inconstant as they
are susceptible, and endeavour to atone by the
vehemence of their impressions for their general
want of durability. At Jocelyn's sensitive age
it is impossible to say how many tender attach-
ments might have been formed during the pre-
valence of this favouritism, had not his heart and
thoughts been entirely pre-occupied by the two
large round black eyes that had shone down
upon him from the gallery, and had absolutely
inflamed his imagination. A first sensation of
this sort is always delightful ; to a youth of
Jocelyn's ardent temperament it may occasionally
prove ennobling and beneficial ; he already at-
tached himself to his unknown inamorata with
a chivalrous constancy, that blinded him to all

38 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

other attractions ; and flattering himself that
the fall of the scarf was not purely accidental,
he spared no pains in discovering its fair owner,
that he might endeavour to justify the preference
with which he considered himself to have been
already in some degree honoured.

Upon this point, however, all his exertions
were unavailing. He endeavoured to ascertain
the precise gallery in which she had sitten, and
caused inquiries to be made of all who were
stationed in the same direction. " How was
she dressed ?" was the first question propounded
to him by every dame or damsel to whom he
applied. " Had she feathers or diamonds in
her hair, or both ? did she wear ear-rings or
necklace, and if so, of what jewels ?" Alas!
Jocelyn could only state that she had dropped a
white satin scarf, and possessed black eyes more
bright and lustrous than all the diamonds of
Golconda. " Was ever any thing so ridiculous,"
exclaimed the fair querists — " to pretend to ad-

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 39

mire her, and yet not to have observed her head-
dress !" and they left him with the impression
that the youth could be no judge whatever of
female beauty, and a decided conviction, that if
he were never so little in love, he must be a good
deal out of his wits. — Day after day he renewed
his inquiries only to encounter fresh disappoint-
ment ; but this mystery and difficulty served to
stimulate a passion which was fed by the ima-
gination, and which an immediate acquaintance
with its object might perhaps have extinguished
as suddenly as it had been kindled.

While still prosecuting this fruitless search, he
received a short letter from Sir John, stating
that on account of his own increasing ill health,
and certain family arrangements, which he men-
tioned in a very ambiguous manner, though he
promised they should be explained upon his
arrival, he wished him to? return to England
with as little delay as possible. Scarcely had
he finished its perusal, when his friend Crofts

40 BRAMBLKTYE HOUSE.

came to announce that himself and his father
were immediately about to accompany the Queen
Mother to London, on a visit to her son Charles
the Second; and upon learning that Jocelyn's
destination was now the same, he immediately
invited him to join the party. To this he gladly
promised consent, provided the arrangement
should not prove inconvenient to her Majesty or
his Lordship. — " If I wish it," replied his young
friend with something of a proud expression,
" I believe it will be quite sufficient ; but you
may call at the Cardinal's palace this afternoon
to ascertain the fact."

This Jocelyn was determined to do, when
upon obtaining an interview with Lord Crofts,
he soon found that his young friend had by no
means overrated his influence, which indeed
seemed to have very materially increased since
his last visit. — Jocelyn's preparations were soon
made ; those of the Queen Mother and her at
tendants were not so quickly despatched ; but

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 41

at length the whole party set forward on their
route to Boulogne. During the progress of the
journey, Jocelyn was more and more astonished
at the deference shown to his young friend, who
now took his meals with the Queen Mother, and
was treated with a homage and distinction quite
inconsistent with his ostensible rank. These
thoughts and his regrets at having been obliged
to leave Paris without discovering the incognita,
whose black eyes had so bewitched his fancy,
occupied his mind until they were absorbed in
the many feelings that possessed him, when
he arrived at Boulogne, and saw the gallant
yachts and pleasure-boats, which had been sent
by the King, for the purpose of conveying the
Queen Mother and her retinue in becoming
state to the river Thames. Short as was the
voyage they had to perform it was not unat-
tended with danger, a storm having suddenly
arisen which drove them for some time up the
Channel, and so terrified Lord Crofts that he

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

cried in the most pitiful manner, although his
young son implored him not to expose himself
to the derision of Lord Sandwich, who was on
board the same yacht, and who jocosely offered
to sell his lucrative post under Government for
one day^s purchase. At length, however, after
much buffeting with the angry element, they
were enabled to make the mouth of the river ;
and Jocelyn being set ashore at Gravesend,
where he planted his foot upon terra firma with
no small satisfaction, hired a horse, and hastened
to join his father, who had now been fain to take
up his residence at the old moated house in the
vicinity of Brambletye.

BUAMBLETYE HOUSE. 48

CHAPTER II.

1 f True, I have married her :
The very head and front of my offending
Hath this extent, no more."

SHAKSPEARE.

WHEN Sir John Compton had returned to
Bruges after having placed Jocelyn at Paris,
he had been received by the King with his usual
courtesy, and had been invited to all the festive
parties, drinking bouts, card-playings, merry-
makings, dances, masqueradings, and excur-
sions, by which the Monarch himself, as well as
his courtiers and courtezans, endeavoured to
beguile the tedium of exile, and take their
revenge of fortune. Where hardly any of
them had the command of wealth, while all

44 BRAMBLETVE HOUSE.

recklessly sought its wildest gratifications, it
was natural that they should resort to the most
desperate gambling, which, while it enabled
some to pursue their pleasures, ruined others,
and demoralized all. If there was little honour
in being admitted to such orgies, Sir John
soon found that there was less profit. By no
means such an adept at play ^as most of his
companions, some of whom, moreover, hesitated
not to resort to mal-practices which he would
have disdained to use,* he soon found his
narrow finances exhausted ; while the seques-
tration placed upon Brambletye prevented his
receiving supplies from England. For some

* Count de Grammont scruples not to recordjhimself,
by the pen of his friend, Count Anthony Hamilton, a
sharper and a blackleg. Both were considered the or-
naments of the restored court of Charles the Second,
and both seem to have thought that there was a merit
in this species of knavery, provided it were adroitly
practised, and escaped detection.

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 45

years past, the wandering and necessitous court
had been followed by a little swarm of Jews,
money-lenders, and harpies of all sorts, who, for
the trifling consideration of fifteen or twenty
per cent, interest, made temporary advances to
such of the cavaliers as were in the habit of
receiving remittances from their own country,
and therefore held forth some prospect of re-
payment. In this .manner had the King himself
often anticipated his fifth of the prizes captured
at sea by Prince Rupert, or the whole of his
allowance from the French Government, both
of which sources of supply were at length cut
off' ; and with the declining credit of their
master, that of the courtiers invariably kept
pace.

These money-lenders and their agents being
the common media of secret communication
with England, had opportunities of inquiry into
every man's private affairs, of which they very
often knew more than the parties themselves.

46 BRAMBLKTYE HOUSE.

By this intelligence they governed their ad-
vances, and being sometimes entrusted to bring
back remittances, they had the means of re-
paying themselves ; a lucky opportunity which
they took good care never to neglect. During
the latter years of the Protectorate, when
Cromwell's power appeared to be consolidated
beyond all chance of an overthrow, these wor-
thies had become much more importunate to
recover old debts, than disposed to make new
loans, often expressing their wonder what had
become of money, for the deuce a pistole
or ducat could they lay hands upon in any
quarter. When, however, their emissaries sent
them intelligence of Cromweirs alarming sick-
ness, news which was known to them sooner
than to the King, the cash once more found its
way most unaccountably into circulation ; the
Monarch forgot all his past troubles and future
prospects in the present delight of being again
enabled to raise money upon any terms ; and

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 47

his courtiers participated, more or less, in the
general alleviation of pecuniary difficulties.
The gaming table again sparkled with gold,
the courtezans with diamonds redeemed from
pledge; all parties united in wasting to-day's
supply as riotously as they could ; and as for
to-morrow, it was a sort of uncertainty that was
never allowed to interfere with present grati-
fication.

Sir John had so far joined the court at a
favourable period, that the sickness of the Pro-
tector becoming known before the complete ex-
haustion of his finances, he found less difficulty
than he would have experienced at any other
period, in procuring advances, although the
increased probability of a Restoration had not
hitherto effected any diminution in the exor-
bitancy of the interest. Among the money-
lenders, who had for some time past followed
the court in its wanderings, was a Flemish
or Dutch woman, known by the name of De

48 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

Weduwe Weegschaal, or Juffrouw Weegschaal,

9

the widow of a Schiedam fisherman, who had
perished at sea in his own herring-buss. Find-
ing herself possessed of a little property, and
being of a shrewd, active, money-getting dis-
position, she had attached herself to the court
for the purpose of speculating upon its neces-
sities. Whenever they alighted, after their dif-
ferent flights, it was her first care to engage a
handsome house, in which she boarded and
lodged such of the cavaliers as could afford her
terms, which were tolerably high, and of which
she always exacted payment in advance. To
an old customer, however, whom she had reason
to believe tolerably safe, she would occasionally
grant credit, never forgetting to make him pay
handsome smart-money for the accommodation.
By diligently pursuing this profitable trade, by
not being at all fastidious as to the purposes
to which her house was occasionally applied
by the King and others, and by making now

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 49

and then judicious advances to some of the
needy nobility upon good security, the Juff-
rouw Weegschaal was supposed to have realized
a handsome sum, though she was always com-
plaining of bad debts, and making a profession
of poverty. Such a personage was not only an
indispensable appendage to such a court, but
being a buxom and rather comely widow, 6t fair,
fat, and forty,1' who was cheerful in her ad-
dress, loved a glass whenever she could get it
for nothing, and had once in a frolic been
kissed by the King, she became a favourite butt
with some of the more gambolsome courtiers,
for those practical jokes and that licentious lan-
guage which were always so acceptable to their
dissipated master.

In the house which this accommodating dame
had secured at Bruges, did Sir John take up his
quarters, well pleased with his hostess on ac-
count of the claret she supplied, which he pro-
nounced to be the best he had tasted since his

VOL. II. D

50 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

ejection from Brambletye. For lack of better
recreation, and as a solace to his misfortunes, he
betook himself to his favourite beverage, with an
ardour which brought him to the bottom of his
purse before he had half slaked his thirst ; and
notwithstanding the fine lessons of economy
which he had so lately preached up to Jocelyn,
he took no pains whatever to adapt his mode of
living to his circumstances. For reasons best
known to herself, the widow gave him credit ;
and her lodger had already become so far in-
fected by the manners of the court, that so long
as he could be gratified by sensual indulgences,
he cared not a jot at whose cost they were ob-
tained. Thus matters continued, until he had
become indebted to some extent, though he knew
not how much. On awakening one morning,
after an over-night's supper of unusually deep
potations, in which the widow had kindly par-
ticipated, he was astonished to find her sitting
by his bed-side, holding a handkerchief to her

BBAMBLETYE HOUSE. 51

eyes, trying to pump up a sob, complaining that
she was a ruined woman, and asking Sir John
how he could have the baseness to seduce an in-
nocent unsuspecting creature, who had already
proved herself the best friend he had in the
world, by supporting him, when nobody else
would advance him a stiver. Poor Sir John
protested his sorrow for whatever had taken
place, of which, however, he entertained no dis-
tinct recollection ; laid the whole blame upon
the claret, which he maintained to be half bran-
dy, very different from his usual beverage; and
finally suggested, that under existing circum-
stances they could not do better than continue
an intimacy which had been so auspiciously
commenced.

To this overture, after -a becoming number of
remonstrances, objections and difficulties, the
tender-hearted widow yielded an apparently re-
luctant assent, and from that day a liaison com-
menced between them, of which the object on
D 2

52 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

the part of the widow will be presently deve-
loped, and to which the inducement on the side
of the baronet, was the habitual indolence with
which he yielded to circumstances, and the hope
of obtaining a landlady who would continue to
supply him with claret, without the disagreeable
ceremony of calling for the reckoning. For va-
rious reasons he wished to keep this affaire du
caur a secret from the young courtiers, of whose
boisterous raillery he stood in awe ; but it was
presently detected, to the great glee of the wags
and buffoons, who christened him the new Sir*
John Fahtaffin Love, and quizzed his amour
and his inamorata with profuse ribaldry and
egregious mirth. To the great relief of the
baronet, he was befriended in this emergency by
the King, who very seriously avowed his admi-
ration of the generalship which had continued to
unite three such indispensable comforts as a hos-
tess, a mistress, and a money-lender, in one and

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 53

the same individual, and heartily congratulated
him on the acquisition he had made.

When the court removed to Breda, as the in-
creasing chances of a Restoration almost amounted
to a certainty, the widow and Sir John of course
accompanied them, the former unfortunately
becoming every day more and more attached to
her paramour, just as the latter became more
and more anxious to shake her off, preparatory
to his return to England. Both these feelings
were respectively increased, when the invitation
from the Parliament to the King to resume the
reins of government was officially announced to
his whole joyous court. The monarch himself
was so hugely delighted at the sight of the
money brought over to him upon this occasion,
by Sir J. Greenville, that he called his sister,
the Princess Royal, and his brother the Duke
of York, to feast their eyes with it, as it lay in
the portmanteau. Through the key-hole of the

54 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

door the widow Weegschaal had contrived to
obtain a glimpse of the golden heap, and never
doubting that every one of the cavaliers would
now become nearly as rich as the King, she re-
solved in her own mind that nothing should ever
separate her from her dear " Saar Jan." Most
of the courtiers, especially where they were bor-
rowers, had been in the habit of vaunting
the large domains and immense revenues to
which they would immediately succeed in the
event of a restoration. Much of this she had
set down to the score of rhodomontade; but the
sight of this huge portmanteau, stuffed with
gold, and which was stated to be only the avant-
courier of a much greater treasure, confirmed
to her imagination every syllable of the glorious
tidings she had heard, and inflamed her desire
of visiting an island, where the ruling passion of
her soul, the acquisition of wealth, could hardly
fail to be gratified to its utmost extent.

In vain did Sir John promise to send for her

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 55

as soon as he had made preparations for her
reception at Brambletye ; she stuck too closely
to his skirts to allow any such conditional sepa-
ration. Sometimes wheedling, sometimes bully-
ing ; now threatening to throw herself into a
well, and now to cast Sir John into prison for
his debt, the poor Baronet, unable to dis-
charge that debt, and too honest to run away
from it, yielded partly from weakness, partly
from good-tempered indolence to her impor-
tunities ; and actually carried his Dutch dul-
cinea with him, to astound the natives in the
vicinity of Brambletye.

Having carried her point thus far, and des-
pairing, perhaps, of rendering herself more
agreeable than she had done, she set diligently
to work to become useful. Here, her activity
of mind, knowledge of accounts, and habits of
business, to all of which Sir John was an
utter stranger, stood her in good stead. By the
help of a few ducatoons, the moated house

56 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

which had remained unmolested, because unin-
habited, was rendered comparatively comfortable.
Lawyers were feed and employed to remove
the attachment placed upon Brambletye by the
Committee of Sequestration; propositions of a
compromise were made to the man who had
agreed to purchase it, and who, though he had
only paid a deposit, had already commenced
extensive dilapidations; injunctions were served
upon the tenants restraining them from paying
rent to any one but the old and rightful pro-
prietor, all of which proceedings, of course, oc-
cupied considerable time. In the mean while,
Sir John's personal comforts were not neglected.
A hunter was provided, on which he occasionally
rode out with the hounds; some claret of his
own particular flavour was imported, and the
baronet, who cared for little else, continued to
give himself up to these luxuries, until a fit
of the gout, more severe than he had hitherto

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 57

experienced, confined him for some weeks to his
bed.

In this misfortune she became his nurse, of
which office she sedulously discharged the du-
ties until his recovery was completed. Fancying
now, that she had rendered herself necessary to
Sir John, she began gradually to disclose what
she considered to be necessary to herself. She
was suddenly tormented with qualms of con-
science about the guilty state in which they
were living, not so much on her own account,
for she might be spared long enough to re-
pent, as upon Sir John's, whose precarious
health rendered it quite uncertain how soon he
might be called to his dread audit. Her mind
was now made up ; she would receive the
amount of her claim;— (here she put in an ac-
count very neatly drawn out, but of most
alarming longitude;) this would be quite suffi-
cient to maintain her in Holland, and she could

D 5

58 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

devote the remainder of her days to expiatory
offices of- charity and religion, if she could be
only once more made an honest woman in Eng-
land. This was touching Achilles upon the
heel ; assailing Sir John upon the only vulne-
rable point. To her sudden fits of angry re-
proach or pathetic appeal, which were at first of
rare occurrence, he could turn a deaf ear ; but
when they were perpetually renewed, the wear
and tear of their annoyance became intolerable
to a soft and easy temper like the baronet's ;
and the idea of freeing himself from her impor-
tunities, even by so hazardous an experiment as
marriage, began to be more complacently enter-
tained. Debilitated in body, enervated in mind,
desiring nothing but a quiet home and the tran-
quil enjoyment of his bottle; and above all,
hoping that by drawing the arrow closer to him
he might shoot it away for ever, the simple
Sir John, at length, sent for a priest, and,

BRAMBLKTYE HOUSE. 59

within the walls of the old moated house,
converted the Juffrouw Weegschaal into Lady
Compton.

Incongruous, and even ridiculous and de-
grading, as this match might be esteemed, Sir
John might, perhaps, have been enabled to jus-
tify his choice, if she had left him as he anti-
cipated, or if her subsequent conduct had been
at all consistent with her previous demeanour ;
but this, unfortunately, was by no means the
case. Not that there was any diminution in her
personal attentions ; not that she broke out into
vulgar violence, as women similarly circum-
stanced are apt to do, or resolved to domineer
the moment the attempt might be made with
impunity. There was nothing vicious, no-
thing of the Jezabel, in her disposition ; every
other passion was absorbed in avarice. To this
the whole of her recent conduct had been ren-
dered subservient ; even her apparent liberality

60

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

and temporary advances being but a bait, by
which she hoped to hook her prey, and obtain
ultimate possession of Sir John and his fortune.
Now that this was effected she became sordidly
penurious, grudging him as well as herself the
common necessaries of life ; seizing and hoarding
up for her own use the rents, which soon began
to be more regularly paid ; refusing to let any
body else have the smallest insight into his
affairs, and grinding every thing into grist for
her own private purse, without the least remorse
or compunction. Intimidation or entreaty were
equally ineffectual; she pursued her course
quietly but steadily ; and poor Sir John, who
grew weary of altercation, and found coaxing
of no avail, would have believed that she had
a design of starving him to death in his own
house, had he not observed, that she denied
herself the smallest gratification with the same
miserly and pinching sordidness. He was the last
man to like such beggarly cheer; but though

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 61

the grumbling of his stomach expressed itself
very intelligibly by his lips, it only brought him
the old answer, that her own ante-nuptial
claims upon his purse were not yet liquidated,
and that it would be time enough to talk of
gluttonous luxuries when he had paid his just
debts.

Such were the domestic arrangements to
which he had so ambiguously alluded in his
letters to Jocelyn ; such were the circumstances
which had so long delayed his return; and such
was the house to which he was now ushered, in
utter ignorance of the woeful change which had
taken place in his father's situation and estab-
lishment. " Jocelyn, my boy, Jocelyn! 'Sblood!
I "in right glad to see you," exclaimed the baro-
net, grasping his son's hand until it was almost
benumbed. " Zooks ! you're grown a fine
strapping fellow ! and the very sight of you,
looking so stout and lusty, makes your old
father's heart quop for joy, as the saying is.

52 BBAMBLETYE HOUSE.

Od's bobs ! we '11 have rare sport now we are
met together in merry old England :

' Come, let 's be merry,

Drink claret and sherry,
And cast away care and sorrow ;
He 's a fool that takes thought of to-morrow/

How goes the rest on't ? Ah, Jocelyn, I be-
gin to forget my old songs now, what with the

gout, and what with ; but wasn't that a

good ballad I sent you about Noll?

' Old Oliver 's gone to the dogs,

Oh no I do mistake,
He's gone in a wherry,
Over the Ferry,

They call the Stygian lake : —

< But Cerberus that great. Porter,
Did read him such a lecture,
That made him to roar, when he came ashore,
For being Lord Protector. —

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 63

1 News! news! news! brave cavaliers be merry ; —
Cheer up your souls, with Bacchus's bowls
Of claret, white, and sherry/

Oh! every body thought it great news then,
but, somehow or other, things haven't turned
up all trumps, as we expected." He then pro-
ceeded to give a detail of the various grievances
he had suffered, stating the scandalous dilapi-
dation of Brarnbletye House, and the legal
difficulties he still experienced in regaining full
possession of his estate. Having dwelt at some
length upon these particulars, and received
from Jocelyn in return a full account of all
his adventures in Paris, the baronet prepared,
though not without considerable embarrass-
ment, to break to his son the intelligence of his
marriage. Assuming, accordingly, after two
or three preparatory hems, the swaggering yet
sheepish look of a man who is resolved to face
down his own exposure, he exclaimed — " Joce-
lyn, my boy, or rather my spruce blade, for

64 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

you look more like my lord's man-at-arms than
the lady's page you were when you quitted
Brambletye ;— no more bird-bolts will you
shoot now at the rooks in the Friar's copse;
no more foot-ball at Christmas ; no more gal-
loping round the moat, with a spit at your
poney's side, to run a tilt at a turnip upon a
broomstick ; bat, ball, and quoit, will all come
amiss to the hand that has couched a lance,
and carried off a Mounseer's helmet before the
King of France: the pranks of Bottom the
weaver, Simpleton the smith, John Swabber,
and Maid Marian, will no longer amuse you,
when the morris dancers come to beat up our
quarters; I am getting almost too old, God
help me! for joining your sports, either with dog
or net, hawk or hunter, fishing-rod or fowling-
piece; I knew you would find Brambletye
plaguy dull, devilish lonesome, and so — "

" My dear Sir !v interrupted Jocelyn, won-
dering whither this introduction was to lead,

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

65

" I beg you will discard every such idea from
your mind ; nothing will delight me more than
to explore all my old haunts, and revisit the
nooks and glens of Ashdown forest, where I
have so often gone a nutting when a boy."

" Od's life, Jocelyn, don't tell me; I know
better, you would have been dull, horribly
dull, cursedly dull, moped to death ; and so I
have hit upon a little expedient which I am
sure you will admit — Oh ! Jocelyn, my boy,
there is no solace, no consolation, nothing after
all, like a woman's love."

Our hero (for so we shall venture henceforth
to call him), who imagined that his father had
been providing a wife for him, and who reverted
with all the fervour of a first impression to the
two black eyes which had so suddenly smitten
him at the carousal, was by no means disposed
to second these matrimonial arrangements, and
therefore replied — u All this is undoubtedly

66 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

true, but surely, Sir, I am as yet too young to
think of marrying."

" If you are, I am not," said the baronet,
" and, therefore, just to make the house a little
bit tidy, as well as more lively and comfortable
for you, I have provided another Lady Comp-
ton to manage matters, and keep the household
in order."

" Married ! " exclaimed our hero, in utter as-
tonishment— " you never mentioned it in any of
your letters."

" Didn't I ? why then I suppose I must have
forgotten it; and that's odd enough too, for
I 'm sure I \e thought of nothing else since it
happened."

" Most cordially do I give you joy, Sir,*
exclaimed Jocelyn, affectionately pressing his
father's hand.

" Why that 's hearty, my brave boy," cried Sir
John, returning the squeeze with a force that

BBAMBLETYE HOUSE. 67

made the fingers crackle in his grasp. " Joy !
ocTs bobs, we 11 have nothing but joy, and you
shall begin by wishing it me in a hoghan-moghan
glass of claret : —

' Come, a brimmer,, my bullies, drink whole ones or
nothing,

Now healths are not voted down.
Tis sack that can heat us, we care not for cloathing,

A gallon 's as warm as a gown/

Zooks, I 'm~ glad you Ve come again, for I
was beginning to lose all my old snatches.
They 're nothing unless we have some one to
match 'em with a rousing chorus." He slapped
Jocelyn heartily on the shoulder, as he concluded
his speech, and immediately after began to troll
at the top of his voice, " The merry Good-fel-
low," one of his favourite ballads, repeatedly
declaring that he was as happy as a king ; but
our hero began to suspect the felicity that re^

68 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

quired such boisterous confirmation, especially
as he thought he could, at times, detect a forlorn
and lugubrious look in the midst of all this
forced and rampant hilarity.

These suspicions were confirmed when Sir
John, after having rendered his son in some de-
gree responsible for his marriage, by declaring
that it was incurred to give him a more cheer-
ful home, began, after the following fashion, to
make his first wife answerable for the second,
determined, that if blame fell any where, it
should not attach to himself. " Zooks ! Jocelyn,
it was very thoughtless of your mother to leave
me as she did ; a lone man at my time of life,
accustomed to a comfortable home : — what could
she expect, how could I do otherwise ?"

" My poor mother, I presume, had no choice
to exercise when she left you," said Jocelyn,
4C and as so many years had elapsed since her
death - -— "

"All her own doing," cried Sir John, rendered

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 69

at once unfeeling and unjust by a sense of the
annoyances her loss had entailed upon him ; "all
her own doing — I told her how it would end
when she took to drinking the Tunbridge waters.
But hang sorrow, and a fico for old griefs ; you
will have a brave substitute, Jocelyn, for your
step-mother is a rare housewife, frugal and
thrifty ; we shan't want any save-alls. Ay, and
a comely dame too, though not so buxom as she
was ; for since she took to dining upon water
zootje, and drinking small beer, she has become
a trifle fishy in the face, and a thought sowish
in the figure."

" Saar Jan ! Saar Jan ! mijne waarde !'r
cried a husky gutteral voice from without,
while the party thus invoked exclaimed, with
a chop-fallen look — " "Sblood ! here she is."
The door opened, and Jocelyn was introduced
to the new Lady Compton, whose attractions,
rather from, the effects of a sedentary life, and
the fore-mentioned diet, than from the lapse of
time, had been woefully on the wane since she

TO BEAMBLETYE HOUSE.

was kissed by the King at Bruges. Her com-
plexion was wan and sodden, her dull grey
eyes had no brows, a sandy mustachio had
sprung up on either side of her upper lip,
which would have seemed more bristling and
obtrusive but that it matched the colour of the
skin ; and of her undulatory and multitudinous
figure it is sufficient to say, that it justified
her husband's coarse epithet. Nor were her
attractions embellished by her costume, her
parsimonious system not having allowed her to
buy new clothes till she had worn out those she
had imported from Holland. A coif, with two
laced streamers, confined her hair, which was
dressed backward from the forehead ; two huge
gold ear-rings reposed upon her ample shoulders ;
her gown of green Paragon, edged with Brussels
lace, was decorated at the stomacher with a pro-
fusion of gilt buttons and crossings of gold
filligree ; her waist, ample as it was, acquired
a comparative tenuity from the prodigious ex-

BEAMBLETYE HOITSE. 71

pansion of the hips, in whose quiltings some
score yards of flannel appeared to be engulfed;
while her petticoats were short enough to dis-
cover a pair of most substantial legs, cased in
blue cotton stockings with yellow clocks, and
terminating in stout lacquered shoes with gilt
buckles. — There was nothing modern about her,
except two or three black patches, which being
then the reigning mode, and of trifling expense,
had been applied to as many pimples upon her
cheeks. Though antiquated, however, in fashion,
her clothes were scrupulously clean, and appa-
rently quite as good as when they were first
purchased. The^e was nothing shabby in her
attire, nothing starved or pinched in her ap-
pearance ; nor would any one have suspected
her miserly disposition, unless he had happened
to notice the eager twinkling of her eyes when-
ever it by chance encountered a piece of money,
however trifling its amount.

" Ik ben verheuyd u te zien, Myn Heer Joce-

7£ BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

lyn," cried the same wheezing voice he had pre-
viously heard — " hae is het met u ?"

" Your mother understands English," said
Sir John, " though she prefers speaking Dutch."

I care not how little we exchange of either,
thought Jocelyn to himself, as he stared in utter
amazement at his father's most inexplicable
choice. The Vrouw, however, lost no time in
making sad complaints of her great disappoint-
ment, of their mutual poverty, of the difficulties
she had encountered, and the troubles to which
she was still daily exposed on account of " De
Ridder Jan," winding up the whole with a
declaration, that her own pecuniary claims were
yet far from being satisfied, and endeavouring
to make herself intelligible by a patois, contain-
ing Dutch, French, and English, in about equal
proportions. " De Ridder Jan," she exclaimed,
" dat is awe vader, gaat op de jagt, goes a la
chasse, he hunt : — he is een groote drinker,
comme un poisson he tipple : — zingen een drink-

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

lied, chanson a boire to sing, dat is zyn liefheb-
bery, his plus grand plaisir : — hij zal niet rijk
worden, he shall come rich jamais :^-meer ver-
teert dan hij inkomen heeft — he debourse more
dan his income. — Wat mij aangaat, ik leef
zuinig : ik ben spaarzaam — pour moi, I am
cheap to live — voor Geld genoeg, vrienden
genoeg, and Geen pijp, geen dans ; point d'amis
sans argent; who zal dance must pay de pipe."
" Well, well, my lady, or mevrouw, whichever
you like best," cried Sir John, after she had con-
tinued a little longer in this strain ; " prythee,
sputter and spit no more Dutch in our faces, but
see and get us a good feast, not a fast ; for
though Jocelyn be no prodigal son, well treat
him as such for once and away. And harkye,

Juffrouw Weegs 1 mean my lady, as much

swipes and water-zootje as you like for yourself,
but a solid joint and a flask of claret for me and
my boy ; for the devil may have our share of all
your wishy-washy dabs and slip-slops.'1

VOL. II. E

74 BRAMBLETYE JIOUSE

"Saar Jan! Saar Jan !" cried her ladyship,
shaking her head — " Eene groote lantaren en
weinig licht, vous avez une giande lanterne, but
little light in you head. Het is bette to spaar
in het beginnen dan op het einde. Eilaas ! mijn
heer Jocelyn, uwe vader ziet niet verdor dan
zijn neus lang is — he see no furder dan is nose
long is. Hij is mijn bedorf geweest— he is my
ruin — Och laaci ! Och laaci !"

Again shaking her head mournfully as she
uttered this interjection, she walked slowly
away to perform the unwelcome office of pro-
viding a better dinner than usual, while Sir
John, upon the prudent principle, that the least
said is the soonest mended, diverted the conver-
sation as soon as she had turned her back, and
forbore the smallest allusion to his marriage, or
the merits of the step-mother whom he had pro-
vided, so entirely out of consideration for Joce-
lyn's accommodation and comfort. Nor was the
latter mindful to express a becoming gratitude

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE 75

for so signal a favour, an omission which seemed
to excite little surprise in his father, and for
which it is therefore hoped the reader will not
too rigorously judge him. Following Sir John's
example, he did not even mention the name of
her ladyship, partly because he could hardly
apply that title to her without laughing, and
partly because he thought it much better to re-
concile himself to an evil that was now inevitable,
than wound his father's feelings by a single ex-
pression of surprise or regret. After having
chatted together for some time, recalling former
scenes, and arranging future plans, he left Sir
John, that he might ramble over the old moated
house before he prepared himself for dinner. In
executing this purpose, he had occasion to pass
by the end of the little, low, archeJ hall, in peep-
ing into which he had a fresh opportunity of
observing how completely the daemon of avarice
had taken possession of his step-mother. An
aged rustic had come to pay a trifle of rent,
E 2

76 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

which he wished to deliver into the hands of Sir
John himself, but upon being assured that he
was too much disabled by the gout to see any-
body, or to sign a receipt, which must accord-
ingly be done by herself, the farmer produced
a greasy leather bag, and emptied its contents
upon the table. Her ladyship's eyes were in-
stantly fixed upon the treasure with a gloating
delight that animated the whole surface of her
broad sluggish countenance, while the fingers of
both hands involuntarily opened and shut, as if
she could hardly repress her desire to clutch it
instantly. At one moment the rustic talked of
calling another day, when he could see Sir John,
at which intimation she was obviously preparing
to grapple his bag by force, and her features
declared, that the struggle for its recovery must
be desperate to be successful. But the tenant
altered his mind, took his receipt, and departed;
while her ladyship, whose eyes actually seemed
to glisten with a tear of joy, thrust the greasy

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 77

bag deep into her bosom, and waddled briskly
away upon her toes, so as to make as little noise
as possible in her retreat.

The painful reflections excited by this occur-
rence were somewhat alleviated by his encoun-
tering Serjeant Whittaker, whom he greeted
with great cordiality, and who was not less de-
lighted at renewing acquaintance with his young
master. " Couldn't leave Sir John in his trou-
bles," said the veteran, " especially in the great-
est misfortune of all, this cursed marriage, (ask
pardon, Mr. Jocelyn;) so I came here to be
jack-of-all-trades ; and if it wasn't for Sir John,
damn me if Jack Whittaker would drink swipes,
or stay another hour in pinch-belly house, for so
we all call it. Of all the cursed griping, grind-
ing, starvation, dry-throated, skin-flint, stingy,

niggardly but Lord ! I forget she is your

mother, Mr. Jocelyn; though when you come
to know her as well as we do, and to have the
stomach-ach as often as we have, you will

78 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

confess that Sir John couldn't have done bet-
ter than take my advice, and give her a certain
choice.""

" That will depend upon the nature of it,"
said Jocelyri.

" Why, I merely recommended him to let
me give her a fair start with the cat-o '-nine-tails,
when she might have a choice of either leaping
over the moat and trudging off, or of falling
into it and being drowned, though I must say I
should like the last the best, for dead work is
sure work."

" This is language," said Jocelyn, " which I
ought not to hear, and which Sir John, I am
sure, can never have encouraged.1'

" Then he had better stop my mouth by
cramming it with good victuals," said Whittaker,
as he walked away in a churlish mood, still
mumbling curses against the Vrouw Skinflint as
lie presumed to designate his mistress. After
having wandered about the house, which he

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 79

found in a sufficiently forlorn and comfortless
plight, Jocelyn betook himself, upon the sum-
mons of the bell, to the dining-room, where Sir
John and his lady were waiting his arrival before
they seated themselves at the table. So sordid
and sorry was the repast, that it might well
justify Sir John's exclamation — "'Sblood! my
lady, is this all ? Another fast-day ? zooks !
I could get better pickings out of a beggar's
wallet, or from the orts of a costermonger's Sun-
day supper. As for your cat-sup water-zootje,
you may stir it up as long as you like, but the
devil a ladle for me."

" In troebel water is goed visschen," said her
ladyship, helping herself very quietly and plen-
tifully to some flounders from the tureen before
her—" gij zijt wel gelukkig — you are lucky
Saar Jan, een dinner to have, when ik heb niet
een stuiver, quand je n'ai pas le sous, not a
penny in de huis. Koper geld, kopere ziel-
missen — no farding, no feast."

80 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

To the scantiness of the dinner Jocelyn was
presently reconciled, but he was shocked at the
sordid falsehood which pleaded such utter des-
titution, when he had seen her receiving and
secreting money in the morning. However, he
determined not to excite any new altercation by
noticing the occurrence, and with the same mo-
tive betook himself eagerly to some hashed mut-
ton placed before him, declaring that it was
a dish of which he had always been particularly
fond, and which would enable him to dine like
an emperor. If there were as little abstract
truth in this averment, as in her ladyship's de-
claration that she was without a single stiver to
procure more dainty cheer, it is to be hoped that
the difference of the motive will make our hero's
want of veracity a much more venial, if not
indeed, an amiable, transgression. Anxious to
preserve appearances as long as possible, and
avoid any matrimonial squabbles on this first
day of Jocelyn's introduction, Sir John fol-

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 81

lowed his son's example, dispatching the hashed
mutton with an alacrity which was rather at-
tributable to the want of any edible substitute
than to his preference of that nefarious rifaci-
mento. Thus much we have felt ourselves
bound to state in vindication of the baronet's
epicurean taste.

" Honger is een scherp zevaard, Saar Jan,""
exclaimed her ladyship, in a voice rendered more
than usually plethorick and wheezing by her
having just finished a whole tureen of water-
zootje, — " hongry dog zall eat dirt podding —
Ha ! ha ! — Mijn Heer Jocelyn, wat zal u drin-
ken ? Hier is goed dun bier.1'

" Good small beer !" exclaimed Sir John,
thrown off his guard by so unmerited, not to
say incompatible a character, — " what a bounce !
'Sblood ! Jocelyn, don't touch any such rascally
ditch-water. It is swipes— fit for nothing but
hog- wash, though my lady will swill you a
gallon at a sitting."

E 5

32 BR AMULET YE HOUSE.

As if in confirmation of this assertion, she
tilled a large mug with this vilipended liquod,
emptied it at a draft, drew in a long breath,
puffed it out again with distended cheeks and
apparent satisfaction, and exclaimed, u Ha !
dat is goed de keel smeeren ; dat is goed !"

Fortunately there was a bottle of wine upon
the table, of which Sir John had taken early
possession, as if to secure it from his lady.
From this he filled Jocelyn's glass and his own
without relinquishing possession ; but her lady-
ship seemed to have no wish to contest the di-
vision of his prize, contenting herself with the
black jack, from which she replenished her mug
until the whole was exhausted. Never had
Jocelyn hurried to open the door with more
satisfaction, than when his beer-drinking step-
mother quitted the dining-room ; and never,
probably, had Sir John prepared himself with
greater glee for a rousing bouse, than when he
drew his chair close to his son's, slapped him

BR AMULET YE HOUSE. 83

heartily on the back, chuckled, and cackled with
anticipates, patted a favourite old pointer that
had just laid its head on his lap, and sang
aloud —

' What tho' we are made both beggars and slaves,

Let 's endure it and stoutly drink on't ;
Tis our comfort we suffer 'cause we won't be knaves

Redemption will come ere we think on't.
Let us take t'other cup to cheer our hearts up,

And let it be purest Canary;
We '11 ne'er shrink nor care at the crosses we bear,

Let them plague us until they be weary."

"I can't give you Canary, Jocelyn, but we
have some claret that's mighty pretty tipple;
and you shall drink like a judge before you
budge, so finish the bottle and clear off your
glass."

At these words he doubled his little finger,
put it into his mouth, and blew two or three
such piercing whistles, that Jack Whittaker, ac-
customed to the shrill signal, soon made his ap-

84 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

pearance. " Give us some hoghan-moghan
glasses," cried Sir John, " ask your jnistress for
the key of the cellar, and bring a jug of claret."
— " Av, ay, Sir John," replied the Serjeant
with a familiar nod, and disappeared.

"'Sblood!" continued the Baronet, "we'll
drink our first bumper to the King, for we may
do it now without type or symbol —

' We 11 drink and pray no longer,

For the King, in mystical fashions ;
But with trumpet's sound,
His health shall go round,
And our prayers be proclamations.
Singing hey trolly, lolly, loe !'

Just as he had finished this ditty, Whittaker
returned with the welcome jug in his hand ; but
something had so tickled his fancy during his
absence from the room, and his efforts to sup-
press his laughter occasioned such heavings of
his shoulders, that as Sir John held out his

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 85

huge glass to be filled, he rattled the jug two or
three times . against the brim without pouring
out a drop. " What are you sniggering at, you
grim-looking gaby ?v exclaimed the Baronet,
growing impatient ; " fill the glass."

" Ay, ay, Sir John," replied Whittaker, at
length obeying the command, which he had no
sooner done than his master exclaimed, "'Sblood !
what's this ? what is it ?"

" Swipes ! your honour," shrieked Whit-
taker, delivering himself boisterously of the
laughter which he had so long bottled up.

" And how dare you, saucy scoundrel, play
me such a trick as this ?" exclaimed Sir John,
looking fiercely at his servant, and seemingly
half disposed to throw the nauseous liquid in
his face.

" I, Sir John ? drinking swipes is too serious
a matter for me to joke about. It 's my lady's
orders. She said you had had wine enough ;
she couldn't afford another drop, and if she

86 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

could, it would only give you the gout again ;
so no more should you have."

" Damn her and the gout too!" cried the
Baronet, " that was her excuse for sending my
hunter to be sold. What, the foul fiend ! are
we to swill swipes, like groom-porters and coal-
heavers ? A pize upon me, if I don't have the
key of the cellars, even if I cut it out from the
twenty-fourth quilting of her flannel hips."
He was hurrying away in furious dudgeon for
the purpose of executing this threat, when
Jocelyn interposed, and used every effort to
allay his indignation, declaring that so far as
himself was concerned, claret was no treat to
one who had so lately come from France ; that
he had already drunk more than his usual
quantity ; and that he would much rather pro-
ceed to Brambletye House, which he had not
yet visited, as he was anxious to ascertain the
extent of, the dilapidations, and consult with
him respecting its repairs. With some diffi-

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 87

culty he succeeded in persuading his father to
abandon his hostile intentions, and accompany
him to the devastated mansion ; but during
their walk he puffed, and snorted, and knit hif
brows, and angrily grasped his oaken staff, and
gave vent to sundry epithets which we dare
not venture to record, and more than once ex-
pressed his regret that he had not taken Jack
Whittaker's advice in the first instance, and
suffered him to give her a fair start with the
cat-o'-nine tails.

Too much irritated now to dream of conceal-
ing her ladyship's little foibles, he told Jocelyn
that she sometimes actually got up in the mid-
dle of the night, to pick his pockets of any
money that accidentally came into his posses-
sion during the day, adding,., that he had once
baited his waistcoat with a gold jacobus, and
secretly set a snap rat-trap upon it, but that
she had been cunning enough to carry it off
without injury, though he still lived in hopes of

88 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

shortening two or three of her fingers. During
the whole of this narrative, he termed her the
damned Juffrouw Weegschaal, a name which
he invariably applied to her in his angry moods,
either for the purpose of irritating her, or of
affording a momentary gratification to himself,
though it eventually aggravated his own bitter
regret, that he should ever have been fool
enough to transform so appropriate an appel-
lation into the inconsistent title of Lady
Compton.

On his arrival at the mansion, Jocelyn found
it in a most forlorn and desolate condition.
Although the roguish purchaser, as we have
already stated, had only paid a deposit, and
was absolved by the dissolution of the Pro-
tectoral Government from any legal claim for
the remainder, he had not only refused to part
with his prize, but proceeded rapidly to dis-
mantle it ; applying the materials to a house
which he was constructing at a little distance.

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 89

Part of the roof and of the floorings of the
upper rooms had already been removed ; and
although application had been made for an in-
junction, and further demolition had been thus
arrested, he had succeeded by interposing all the
chicaneries of the Chancery, in retaining unjust
possession of the premises. . Most of the tenants,
availing themselves of this double claim, refused
to pay rent to either ; but some from honesty,
and their old attachment to Sir John, regularly
made their disbursements to him, or rather to
his lady, who performed the functions of bailiff,
steward, and chief manager. Jocelyn explored
with great interest every chamber of the house
in which he had been born and had passed all his
earlier years; lingering for some time in the
music gallery of the great hall, and contrasting
the desolate appearance of the scene before him,
abandoned to silence, cobwebs and decay, with
the clamorous voices, furious faces, glittering
armour, and levelled pistols of the Ironsides,

90 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

when he had with such boyish temerity launched
an arrow at their colonel. Nor could he, without
a sigh, advert to the wretched fate of that indi-
vidual, when he recollected his kind and cour-
teous demeanour towards himself ; and remem-
bered, that with his characteristic courage, he
had disdained to fly.or conceal himself upon the
Restoration. Sir John pointed out to his obser-
vation, how the sculptured acorns in the porch
had been battered and bruised by the weapons
of the Roundheads : vowing, that if he lived to
renovate the mansion, he would have oak-leaves
and acorns carved upon every post ; though he
would leave those in the porch unrepaired, that
he might never enter his house without a me-
mento, to keep alive his hatred of the Puritans.
The wind went sobbing and sighing through
the empty chambers, and as they quitted the
mournful hall, the hollow echoes of their feet
seemed to be the voice of lamentation at the
desolate state of the mansion, and a solemn

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 91

appeal to its master to restore its former
splendour. They next proceeded to the Friar's
Copse, the scene of Jocelyn's boyish sports,
amid whose lofty trees the rooks, wiser than the
vain glorious lords of creation, were quietly
cawing as in the olden time; tending their
nests, or pursuing their customary recreations,
unaffected by the changes of dynasty, or the
furious passions of the busy unfeathered bipeds,
who were so perpetually wrangling for the
possession of the earth beneath them.

" 'Sblood ! Jocelyn," cried Sir John, " let us
push forward for the Swan, at Forest Hill, and
take a cup of burnt claret or appled ale with the
landlord, a merry old cock, and a staunch, and,
I warrant me, crows as loud as the best, for he
was ever a friend to Rowley, and must have
had rare tippling o1 late under his old ash-tree.
Zooks ! .the fellow's voice is as clear as a bell,
and he can troll aloud now many a ballad upon
red-nosed Noll, which he was fain to whisper in

92 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

corners before the day of Restoration and
roasted Rumps."

Jocelyn suggested that it was getting late,
and expressed a doubt whether his father's ten-
der feet could carry him so far.

" Tush !" cried the Baronet, " my oaken
staff will help me forward ; this trusty old staff,
which I cut with my own hand from the royal
oak at Boscobel : — besides, the moon will be up
presently, and I long to hear the rogue carol
' the Roundhead's Race.' Ah, the lucky dog !
he has got back his King, lost no estate, and
won no damned Juffrouw Weegschaal. Come
along, Jocelyn ; gouty as I am sometimes, I can
hold you a stout pull still."

So saying, he set forward towards the forest
with a sturdy vigour, which would presently
have brought him to his journey's end could
he have continued it ; but soon finding that he
had materially overrated his strength, though
by no means disposed to. admit the fact, he

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 93

stopped short; and after appearing to ponder
for a moment, exclaimed : — " Zooks, Jocelyn,
I Ve been thinking 'twould look shabby to go at
this time o' night, as if we were afraid to show
our faces in the sunshine ; so we '11 put it off till
to-morrow, and in the mean time we '11 rest our-
selves a bit under this oak-tree, for every true
Cavalier loves an oak, and I see you begin to be
tired."

Though this was by no means the case with
Jocelyn, he willingly consented to the pro-
position ; and they accordingly seated them-
selves under the tree which terminated a strag-
gling thicket of the forest.

" Ah, Jocelyn !" cried Sir John, as he looked
mournfully towards the mansion, of which only
a dim outline was now perceptible. " There 's
old Brambletye, but it looks as if it were quite
dead. No lights in the windows; no smoke
from the chimneys ; no hunters in the stable ;
no claret in the cellar ; and its roof off too,

94 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

showing its poor old bones. Zooks ! when I
think of the jolly doings we have had there, I
can hardly bear to look on't."

" Away then with all such gloomy thoughts,"
cried Jocelyn, anxious to cheer his father's spi-
rits, " and let us look forward to better times.
You shall soon recover your rights; and the
huntsman's horn, and the rattling glass, and the
jovial song shall resound through the halls of
Brambletye as merrily as ever."

" So they shall, my brave boy," cried Sir
John, elated at the thought, at the same time
slapping his son on the knee, singing in a
loud voice an appropriate verse of the ca-
valier song —

' And then shall a glass,
To our undoers pass,

Attended with two or three curses ;
May plagues sent from hell,
Stuff their bodies, as well

As the Cavalier's coin does their purses/

BRAMBLETYE "HOUSE. 95

Yes, my boy, we "11 soon get the roof on again,
and then "

" Anathema ! maranatha ! " exclaimed a se-
pulchral voice immediately behind him ; " never
shall a roof again cover the house of sacrilege !"

" Damn her ! there 's the black ghost !" cried
the Baronet, starting up, and throwing his staff
in the direction of the sound. " At her, Jocelyn !
catch her, for she runs too fast for me ; seize the
Jezabel, cut out her croaking tongue with your
rapier, grapple her, hamstring her, throttle her,
don't let the she-devil escape." — Startled at the
sounds which had fallen upon his ear with a
doubly solemn effect after the blithe echoes of
the song, and puzzled at the meaning of his fa-
ther's passionate expressions, Jocelyn remained
for some moments in suspense, until Sir John
again cried out, " Run boy, run, catch the
cursed jade, if you love me," — when he com-
menced a pursuit, but presently returned, de-
claring that he could not even hear a footfall, and

96 BHAMBLETYE HOUSE.

that in the darkness of the forest it was impos-
sible to discern a single object. " Ay, the old
story," exclaimed Sir John — " a cunning jade,
and as fleet as a Yorkshire tike ; but we shall
trap the bitch-fox still, and if she pay not blood-
sauce for her pranks, you may e'en pick out my
brains with my own sword, and spread 'em on a
Banbury cake." He now rose wrathfully to return
home, relating as they proceeded towards the
moated house, the different mysterious appear-
ances of this figure, the strange import of her ban-
ning language, for which he professed himself ut-
terly unable to account, and the marvellous power
which she seemed to possess of rendering herself
invisible, or, at least, of escaping where it would
seem almost impossible for any thing human
to avoid apprehension. Although more free
from superstition and credulity than most of his
contemporaries, Jocelyn could not help being
struck by the singularity of this inexplicable
narrative, as well as by the recent occurrence

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 97

of which he had himself been a witness ; while
the coincidence between the malisons of this
secret visitant, and the continued misfortunes
with which Brambletye House had been assailed,
seemed to prove that there was something more
than madness or malice in her denunciations.
During their walk home Sir John maintained a
stern silence, only interrupted by an occasional
curse at his tender foot, which began to wince at
the length of the excursion ; Jocelyn revolved
in his mind the mystery of the black ghost;
and neither of them was in a very c ompla-
cent cheer when they terminated their walk,
and again crossed the threshold of the moated
house.

VOL. II.

98 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

CHAPTER III.

" O heav'ns ! wert thou for this loose life preserv'd,
Are there no gods nor laws to be observ'd?"

LORD ROCHESTER.

" 'SLIFE !" exclaimed Sir John to his son two
or three mornings after his arrival, " is it not
a burning sin and shame, that I who for years
together hardly ever doffed buff and steel-cap ;
who was in the great saddle from sun-rise to
sun-set, ever ready to gallop in the King's cause
where there was flashing of powder and clashing
of swords ; who sat in a pool of my own blood
after Worcester fight, and yet rode twenty miles
with Don Carlos and Pendril to assist the King's

BBAMBLETYE HOUSE. 99

escape ; who served him abroad, and advanced
money for him, (for which I have never been
paid,) after I was ruined and driven from home;
I say Jocelyn, isn't it a crying sin and a cruel,
that I should be not only forgotten by Rowley,
but kept out of my own estate by a rascally
Roundhead ? Four letters have I written to
the King himself, but the deuce a word of ac-
knowledgment of any sort ; and as to assistance,
it seems to me that the poor Cavaliers, now
they have served the turn, and formed the lad-
der to the throne, are to be kicked down and
trampled upon, even by the rogues that bowed
the knee to Noll. They say you must run the
buck down to make sure of his horns, and
I would have gone up to London myself,
but this cursed gout, and the Juffrouw — in
short, something or other has always cried,
hark back."

" My dear sir," cried Jocelyn, " why not en-
trust me with this commission? Confident
F 2

100 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

am I that our old friend the Marquess of
Ormond— "

" Ay, he has had his reward, and been cre-
ated a duke," interrupted Sir John, " and is
at this moment in Ireland : without a friend at
court nothing can be done, and I know none of
the young dogs that now run down the game
for the King, and make him follow wherever
they give tongue. Jack Wilmot, indeed, who is
one of the chief favourites, ought to remember
me ; for I once sat him behind me when he was
a boy, and galloped with him after the hounds
till he had hardly a puff of breath in his body.
Ah ! his father and I have rode together many
a time after the red-coats, though we have been
runaways in our turn. Well do I recollect our
taking the King his dinner, when he was dis-
guised as a wood-cutter in the copse at White-
ladies, with a bill in his hand ; and how hungry
the King was, and how frightened we all were
when a stag started out from the brake behind
us ! We were obliged to cut off his Majesty's

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 101

hair with a knife for want of scissors, and there
we undressed him, and he gave one of his ser-
vants the chain of gold or spannar-string, which
had been presented to him by a Scottish lord.
'Sblood ! Jocelyn, Harry Wilmot had a nar-
row escape when he crept into the hot kiln at
Mrs. Lane's malt-house, while the soldiers were
searching the premises, and was half-baked when
they took him out again.* But poor Harry

* The tract in the British Museum, to which refer-
ence has already been made, and whence some of the
foregoing particulars have been extracted, states that
Mrs. Lane's share in his Majesty's escape having by some
means transpired, a party of soldiers were sent to appre-
hend her, and finding she had fled, burnt the premises
to the ground. The lady succeeded in reaching France,
of which she apprised Charles, who was then in Paris.
After relating that the King immediately sent one of
his own carriages for her, and went out to meet her,
the author gives the following trait, which (if true) is
not less honourable to his Majesty's sense of gratitude,
than to the humble individual who was the object of

102 BEAMBLETYE HOUSE.

Wilmot 's dead now ! Wilmot 's dead now, and
little Jack has become my Lord Rochester, and
the King's crony. — A wild rogue they tell me,
and a wicked, but I warrant me none the less
liked by merry Rowland.""

" He must be more wicked even than report
makes him," said Jocelyn, " if he would refuse a
service to his father's oldest friend. I will de-
mand his good offices in your behalf, and if all
else fail, I am determined to make an appeal
to the monarch himself, and request not only
the restitution of your estate, but some em-
ployment for myself. Your exertions and

it.—" The Queen, his mother, the Dukes of York and
Glocester, went out also to meet this preserver of their
son, sovereign, and brother. The coaches meeting, and
she being descended from her coach, his Majesty like-
wise descends, and taking her by the hand, salutes her
with this grateful expression — ' Welcome, my life !'
and so, putting her into his own coach, conducts her to
Paris, where she was entertained with the applause and
wonder of the whole court."

BEAMBLETYE HOUSE. 103

sufferings surely entitle you to advance this
claim."

" Body o' me, Jocelyn ! if a just claim were
a sure card, we should speed with the best, and
the kitchen-fire of Brambletye would blaze as
it used to do. 'Slife ! didn't I refuse to put up
the crosses and harp, and retain the three lions
at the back of my grate, ay, and well-polished
too, till I was routed out by Noll's Ironsides ?
and yet after all, I am to be ejected from my
own house, as if I were as big a Roundhead as
Cromwell, Ireton, and Bradshaw, who have
been dug up, and bundled out of their coffins.
Surely the King must have been bamboozled
about me, or never have received my letters.
But kissing goes by favour at court ; so you
shall go up to Whitehall, and try your luck
with a letter to Jack Wilmot : if he refuses to
assist you, you shall have another for the King ;
and if Rowland fobs you off— 'Sblood ! Til
hobble up myself to the foot of his throne, and
shake this oaken staff in his face, and remind

104 BEAMBLETYE HOUSE.

him that it was cut from the very tree into
which I helped him to climb for his life, and
into which I afterwards threw up a pillow that
he might lay his head in Don Carlos's lap, and
get a little sleep."

Jocelyn was by no means sorry to accept this
commission, for it was not only painful to him
to witness the grovelling situation in which his
father was placed by his unfortunate marriage,
but he had already received several very intel-
ligible hints from his sordid step-mother, which
rendered him anxious to quit her presence with
as little delay as possible. Certain that he would
become, however unintentionally, a spy upon
her actions, and apprehensive that he would
endeavour to intercept the supplies, or withdraw
Sir John altogether from her grasp, she had
always opposed his coming over to England,
and now sought to drive him from his father's
house by rendering it as uncomfortable to him
as possible. This had been one reason of the
sorry cheer she had provided upon his arrival ;

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 105

this had been the incessant motive of her sub-
sequent demeanour, and Jocelyn was not of a
temper to require being twice told by any one
that his presence was unwelcome. Upon the
following morning, accordingly, he demanded
the letter of introduction to Lord Rochester,
together with one for the King, which he pledg-
ed himself to deliver into his Majesty's own
hands, and immediately took his departure for
London.

At about two o'clock on the day after his ar-
rival, he presented himself at his lordship's
house, near the Bowling Alley, in Westminster.
He was not yet risen, but as his servants ex-
pected every moment to hear his bell, he was
invited to sit down in the ante-room. In this
apartment, he found a considerable company as-
sembled, by whose conversation he discovered,
that the major portion consisted of calling-again
duns waiting by appointment, and all in high ex-
pectation of touching their money, or receiving
F 5

106 BRAMBLETYE HOtTSK.

a payment on account, for which purpose some
of them had already been several hours in at-
tendance. Among them, however, were others
of a different character; tradesmen, who, con-
sidering inordinate profits a compensation for
protracted payment, were come to tempt him
with specimens of jewellery, plate, sword-handles
and belts, rich ornaments, stuffs, hangings, and
every description of costly gew-gaw. In an arm-
chair a teacher of the guitar had fallen fast
asleep, with his instrument in his hand ; at his
side, a French dancing-master was relieving the
time by rehearsing the Bransles, a Parisian
dance, in which he was to give instructions to
his lordship; in one corner stood a thread-bare
poet, reading over to himself, with prodigious
interest, a copy of encomiastic verses, for which
he expected some trifling honorarium; and in
another was an artist, who, for the consideration
of forty shillings, initiated his pupils in the mys-
tery of folding napkins in eighteen different

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 107

forms for the dinner-table^ an accomplishment
with which his Lordship had been so much
struck, that he had determined to become his
scholar in his own person, though it would seem
to have been better adapted to some of his
numerous servants. While Jocelyn was gazing
upon this motley assemblage, the door again
opened, and in strutted his quondam acquaint-
ance of the Gate-house, Pickering the actor, now
gallantly dressed in fine and flaunting clothes,
seeming to snuff up the very air with a disdain-
ful nose, and carrying himself with a more mag-
nificent swagger than ever. Our hero, who per-
ceived that he was not immediately recognised,
had no sooner made himself known, than he
started back into a threatrical attitude, exclaim-
ing, "Art thou, indeed, the Jocelynian youth ?"
embraced him, with open arms, and then pro-
ceeded to inform him in, his usual bombastic
style, that he was in high repute at one of the
royal theatres, and came here by appointment

108 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

for the prologue to the Tragedy of Valentinian,
which his lordship had been altering from
Fletcher, and which was to be produced in a few
days.

While they were conversing, the servant who
had taken up Jocelyn's letter came to him with a
request, that he would withdraw into his lord-
ship's breakfast-closet, where he would join him
in a few minutes. Willingly obeying this man-
date, he was ushered into a small apartment,
which he had full leisure to examine, before his
solitude was interrupted. Its wooden pannels,
divided into carved compartments, were adorned
with paintings from Ovid's Metamorphoses, beau-
tifully executed, though by no means very deco^
rous in the conception. On a large table were
lying the works of that author, those of Cornelius'
Gallus, and the other amatory classics, the vo-
lumes of Aretino, and several French and Italian
productions of a similar stamp. Open letters
were scattered about from his friends Sedley,

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 109

Etheredge, Henry Saville, and the Duke of
Buckingham ; interspersed among which, were
papers in his own hand-writing, licentious love-
songs, translations from Horace, imitations of
Ovid, satires, and the beginning of the intended
prologue to Valentinian, and a poem entitled
46 Apollo's grief for having killed Hyacinthus
by accident."" At the other extremity of the
same table, the breakfast was set out, consisting
of an apparatus of fairy cups for tea, then a
newly-introduced and costly beverage, some
cordials and restoratives, with eggs, shell-fish,
potted meats, and other salacious condiments.
Nor was the room in less confusion than the
table; vizors, masquerade and court-dresses,
hats, swords, papers, books, and musical in-
struments being carelessly scattered upon every
chair.

His Lordship at last made his appearance, a
tall, slender, graceful figure, habited in a French
morning gown, and already exhibiting in his

110 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

youthful countenance the hectic evidences of a
premature decay. Keceiving Jocelyn with great
courtesy and kindness, he apologised for his late
hours, which he attributed to illness, occasioned
by an over-night's debauch (an excuse, of which
his looks abundantly testified the truth) ; and
smiled, when Jocelyn, in reply to an invitation
to share his breakfast, declared he had already
dined. " I well remember your father, the
stout Sir John Compton," said his Lordship,
commencing his repast, " and though I am a
man, which is a most mendacious genus, and a
courtier, which is the worst species of that ge-
nus, (always excepting a king) J beg you to
believe that I will most willingly serve you to
the utmost extent of my ability. What are your
wishes ?"

Our hero now gave a short account of his
father's services, losses, and sufferings, conclud-
ing with an opinion, that they constituted a
strong claim upon the King's gratitude and
sense of justice.

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. Ill

" The King's what? " exclaimed Lord Roches-
ter, smiling — " his gratitude and sense of jus-
tice? my dear Mr. Compton, you need not have
told me that you are just arrived from abroad.
What is it, think you, that has brought myself
into favour ? Not that my father saved his Ma-
jesty's life at White-ladies ; not that he was a
staunch old royalist, who made it his business
to fear God and honour the King ; but that he
happened to have a graceless dog of a son, who
does neither the one nor the other, though he can
drink, wench, and gamble, with the most royster-
ing blade in London. What claim have you that
is recognised by Charles the Second ? Are you
original and desperate in your oaths like myself,
whose swearing, according to the King's own
calculation, would cost me two thousand a-year
if the Rump Act were still in existence ? Can
you play chess like Brouncker ; tennis, like Sir
Arthur Slingsby; ombre and basset, like Sir
Charles Berkeley and Fitzharding; the fool,
like Tom Killigrew ; the mimic and merry-

BEAMBLETYE HOUSE.

andrew, like Buckingham ? Can you dance a
couranto, like Jermyn; vault upon a tight-rope,
like Jacob Hall ; drink like Sedley and Buck-
hurst ; sing a smutty song like Lord Arlington ;
or a profane one like your humble servant, for
which gadamercy on me ! Can you lend money
like Alderman Bakewell ; import the last French
fashions like de Grammont. ; flatter like Bab
May, or play the pimp like Chiffinch and Rogers?
Have you a pretty sister, cousin or niece, or
even a beautiful little tumbler-dog, setter, ,or
Bellonia spaniel, with yellow ears, and silver
bells about its neck ? Have you, finally, any
interest with Lady Castlemaine, Moll Davies,
Nell Gwyn, or any of the numerous courtezans
that share the King's time and favour, with such
moral and discreet courtiers as a certain Lord
Rochester, of whose mad pranks you may per-
haps have heard ?"

Our hero professed his utter deficiency in any
of these requisites for royal favour, but added

BEAMBLETYE HOUSE. 113

that the King had promised, when at Bruges,
to do something for them upon his Restoration;

" Worse and worse !" cried his Lordship,
" would you have his Majesty set the perilous
example of keeping a promise, and thus bring
a host of claimants upon his back, who are now
all quiet because he has redeemed his pledges to
none ? Your case begins to look desperate."

" I fear so," said Jocelyn, " unless a little
skill in the guitar, and such French songs as I
picked up at Paris, may be rendered available
to our object."

" My dear Sir," said Lord Rochester, rising
and taking him by the hand with a mock gra-
vity, " I congratulate you ; play upon the
guitar and sing French songs ! why did you not
mention this at first ? You have now as fair a
chance of success as if you were a blooming
Hamadryad, and had just stepped out of the
Boscobel oak. Here is my guitar ; voyons !
touch, that I may judge of your services, for you

114 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

may take my word (which however very few
will), or the King's (which nobody in the world
will), that in these times the weakest accom-
plishment is better than the strongest claim."

Jocelyn, who had an admirable voice and
great command of the instrument, accompanied
himself in two or three French chansonettes, so
as not only to delight his auditor (himself an
amateur in music), but to receive from him an
assurance that no accomplishment was more
likely to ingratiate him with the Monarch.
" But some management will be required,1' he
added. " Were he to hear you in a room, and
in your ordinary dress, fond as he is of music,
he might fail to be struck by your proficiency.
Like myself, he has run the whole circle of
ordinary luxury, and cannot be excited except
by some surprise, or new and unexpected sen-
sation, which he values for the moment in pro-
portion to its rarity. If you will wait till I am
dressed, I will stroll with you into the Park,

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 115

when we can consider the best method of attack-
ing him."

Our hero expressed his unwillingness to
usurp his lordship's time, when there were so
many claimants upon it in the ante-room below.

'fHa!" cried his companion laughing heartily,
" is my levee in attendance ? I recollect now
that I appointed them all for eleven oVlock.
You shall see presently how I dispose of the
varlets." So saying he withdrew into his dress-
ing-room, where Jocelyn still heard him alter-
nately laughing and singing until his toilette
was completed. " Now, Signer Compton," he
exclaimed as he re-appeared richly dressed,
(t first let us secure our prisoners, and then hey
for the Mall or the Park." At these words he
left the chamber, followed by Jocelyn, and going
on tip-toe to the door of the ante-room down
stairs, in which his levee was collected by ap-
pointment, softly turned the key, put it in his
pocket, and walked out of the house.

116 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

" Now the Lord deliver the rogues !" he ex-
claimed, after another burst of laughter, " for
it is one of Morland's locks ; nobody can
let them out but myself, and when I shall re-
turn the Fates only know ! I'm sure I don't, as
it will depend upon my being drunk or sober."

" But have they no other means of escape ?"
inquired Jocelyn, somewhat anxious for the
emancipation of his theatrical friend, whose time
of performance, three o'clock in the day, was
now just at hand.

" None, of which I am exactly aware," replied
his Lordship, " unless they venture the leap
from the window into the garden, which they
may do, after all, for a few sprained ancles and
insignificant bruises. Ten to one no bones will
be broken." Thus unconcernedly dismissing
their situation from his thoughts, he led his
companion through St. James's Park to the
garden, under the wall of which, standing upon
the grass walk, was a knot of gentlemen in gay

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

117

attire, whom Lord Rochester instantly recog-
nized to be the King and his select band of
courtiers. The Monarch, leaning his shoulder
against the wall, stood with crossed legs, patting
on the head a diminutive spaniel which he held
in his arms, and looking up to a gorgeously-
dressed female on a terrace of the garden,
parallel with the top of the wall. Not very
decorous in her attire, and somewhat meretri-
cious in her gestures, Jocelyn could observe,
even at a distance, that her features were beau-
tiful, and expressed his opinion that her wit
must be at least equal to her charms, by the
laughter that every now and then burst from
the assemblage below.

" That is Nell Gwyn, the actress, now termed
Mistress Nelly,1' said Lord Rochester ; " a bold,
merry slut; but as for her wit it is of that sort
which every shameless jade has at her command,
and which such loose fellows as myself (to say
nothing of his Majesty, God save the mark !•)

118 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

have seldom any objection to hear. Ten pieces
to one, they are discoursing of her last night's
performance, with which the King was mightily
smitten. Be not seen, for you must not mar
the effect of a surprise : I will join the party,
and learn their plans for the afternoon, which
may assist us in settling our own."

So saying, he walked forward, was welcomed
by the King with a nod, and by Mistress Nelly
with a pelting of sweetmeats and bon-bons, one
of which hitting him in the eye seemed to afford
egregious satisfaction to that laughter-loving
dame, and scarcely less to the party beneath the
wall, who were in their turn assaulted with a
shower of the same dainty missiles. Returning
from these illustrious triflers, whose amusement
was exposed to public observation, he informed
Jocelyn that they were about to proceed imme-
diately to St. James's Park, where for a wager
lords Castlehaven and Arran had undertaken to
run down and kill a stout buck before the King.

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 119

" We cannot desire a better opportunity of a
surprise," he added, " but we have not a mo-
ment to lose, so step forward with a good will."
With these words he hurried to a masquerade-
warehouse in Westminster, where he selected
the garb of a sylvan, or a man of the woods,
together with a guitar, which he entrusted to
a porter, bidding him accompany them to St.
James's Park.

" But what connexion is there between a
sylvan and a French song accompanied by the
guitar?" asked Jocelyn, as they paced rapidly
along.

" None whatever," replied his companion,
" and, therefore, the better for our purpose.
The King has long lost all taste for that which
is appropriate : to be pleased he must be sur-
prised, and this can only be effected by some
absurdity ; the more preposterous the more
likely to succeed.11 In a short time they reached
a ditch behind some bushes, which was instantly

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

converted into our hero's tyring-room ; and
here, as soon as his metamorphosis was com-
plete, Lord Rochester left him to join the royal
party, undertaking to lead them towards his
place of concealment, and directing him to start
forward as soon as he heard the signal of a
whistle. Through the crevices of the hedge
Jocelyn saw the two young noblemen, whose vi-
gorous and active limbs were displayed to the best
advantage by a light elastic vestment, prepare
themselves for their laborious task. A stout buck
was selected for the chase : several ladies in riding-
dresses, with round black satin hats cocked on
one side, and surmounted with scarlet plumes
fastened by a diamond loop, were now joined to
the royal party in the centre of the Park ; while
above the circling enclosures were seen the eager
faces of the numerous gazers, whom curiosity
had attracted to the spot.

The two adversaries of the buck, stationing
themselves at opposite extremities of the Park,

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

contented themselves for a considerable time
with chacing him backward and forward from
one to the other ; until seeing the poor animal
nearly exhausted by its exertions, they joined
together in its pursuit, running it fairly down
by superior fleetness, and killing it at a small
distance from Jocelyn's lurking-place. Thither
the King and his company immediately hastened
to examine the dead stag, and congratulate the
victors : Lord Rochester, as they returned from
the spectacle and approached the bushes, gave
the appointed signal, and Jocelyn started from
his concealment. At this unexpected apparition
several of the ladies shrieked, and ran for pro-
tection behind the King, who having been too
often encountered by similar masquings and dis-
guises to be at any loss for the meaning of the
present, rather enjoyed their terrors, and dis-
posed himself to listen to the song or the ad-
dress which usually terminated these devices.
Jocelyn bent himself gracefully upon one knee,

YOL. II. U

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

rose up, again bowed to the assemblage, struck
his guitar, and thus accompanied it with his
voice : —

Les roys d'Egypte et de Syrie
Vouloient qu'on embaumat leurs corps,
Pour durer plus long temps morts ;

Quelle folie !

Avec du vin embaumons nous,
Que ce baume est doux ! embaumons nous,
Pour durer plus long temps en vie.

" Prettily imagined, i*faith ! " exclaimed the
King, when he had concluded, " and most dain-
tily executed. Od's fish, Lauderdale, isn't" he
a likely spark ? What say you, Arlington ; is
not his voice as charming as Joanni's ? — Jermyn,
you are undone ; yonder is a better leg than
your own. Hamilton, did you ever hear a more
perfect Frenchman ? Whose getting-up is this ?
Your's, Ashley, for a wager ; or else some new
prank of George's, my merry wag of Buck-
ingham."

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

Both these nobleman having strenuously dis-
avowed any knowledge of the singer, the other
courtiers, ever jealous of any new candidate for
their master's capricious favour, began to take
exceptions against his figure, voice, and pro-
nunciation ; while the ladies, after numerous
wondering exclamations of who he could be, and
what he could be, were unanimous and loud in
their admiration.

" Will none of you father this well-graced
man of the woods ?" cried the King:—" then we
must e'en bring the culprit himself to confession.
Prythee, my tuneful Sylvan, who are you, and
who has spirited you to this enterprise ?"

Thus interrogated, Jocelyn approached the
Monarch, took his father's letter from his bosom,
presented it, and retired. Charles happened to
be in a particularly good humour ; and his ap-
pearance exhibited the usual contrast of his
physiognomy. His swarthy, solemn and satur
nine countenance was lighted up by a gracious
G 2

124 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

smile ; and his vivacity and high spirits seemed
to be an effort to get the better of his melan-
choly features, as if the Scottish and French
blood, which he inherited from his respective
parents, were perpetually struggling for the
ascendency. Gratified by the sport he had seen,
a winner of his wager, and pleased with Joce-
lyn's voice, manner, and theatrical mode of ap-
pearance, he took the paper with a smile, and
waving it in the air exclaimed : —

(C A copy of verses for fifty gold pieces ! then
is it assuredly your plot, Rochester, or Sedley's ;
for I know you poets will spare no pains to
give publicity to your verses. Now listen, gal-
lant cavaliers and fair dames, and let us see
who will first detect the rhimester by his
couplets.1'

At these words he opened the paper, when
his countenance suddenly reddened and lowered
into a stern scowl, as he muttered to himself —
"What's this? What's this? Old services

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

— wounds — Boscobel — Bruges — Brambletye
House — Sequestration — impoverished and for-
gotten, but still loyal and faithful subject — John
Compton. — Which of you, gentlemen," he
continued, turning a fierce look upon the
courtiers — *' which of you has presumed to ex-
pose me to this assault ?"

This interrogatory being followed by a dead
silence, he again addressed himself angrily to
Jocelyn.

" Sirrah, did your father expect his name to
be included in the list of seventy or seven hun-
dred Privy Councillors, (I forget which,) that
Monk put into my hands as soon as I arrived at
Canterbury ? Surely, the Comptons have taken
care of themselves. Sir William retained office
in the Ordnance till he died ; and Lord North-
ampton, I take it, is still Lord Lieutenant of
Warwickshire and Constable of the Tower."

" I am sorry to inform your Majesty," said
Jocelyn respectfully, " that a fatal feud of many

126* BBAMBLETYE HOUSE.

years' continuance has existed between Sir John
and those branches of his family."

" 'Ods fish, man !" cried the King, " and am I
to patch up all the silly quarrels of individuals,
as well as those of the nation ? Begone, Sir !"

The irritated Monarch was preparing to de-
part, when again turning towards 'Jocelyn, he
exclaimed in a less angry tone, " What has be-
come of that son of Sir John's whom I re-
member to have seen in Flanders ?"

" I am his only child, Sir," replied Jocelyn,
" and had the honour of being presented to
your Majesty at Bruges."

" What! are you the quondam queen of the
Gate-house that was whipped out of prison by
the gaoler ?"

" The same, Sir," replied Jocelyn, with a
bow.

Either some pleasant association was awakened
by this reminiscence, or some qualms of con-
science about Sir John's long services and his

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 127

unanswered letters flitted athwart his volatile
mind; for the King's anger seemed to have
passed away as suddenly as it had arisen, and he
exclaimed in a pleasant tone of voice : — " Gad •
Arlington, 'twere a pity, after all, not to do
something for such a toward spark, and the son
of a doughty old Cavalier. Have you no place
vacant in your double capacity of Secretary and
Chamberlain, into which we could pop him, and
so silence his tongue till we want him to sing ?"

" He would be an ornament to the Court,"
said Lady Castlemaine, the foremost of the
ladies ; " for I would wager my diamond neck-
lace, that he dances as well as he sings ; and it
is really high time to cure Jermyn of his con-
ceit ; though I know not upon what else he is
to pique himself when his legs are eclipsed.'"

Cfi Your Majesty did not seem to recollect
him/* said Lord Arlington ; " a stranger may
have dressed himself up in this fantastic fashion,
and have presumed to stop you in your path.

1£8 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

Pray, Sir Sylvan or Sir Mountebank," he con-
tinued, addressing himself to Jocelyn, " how
do you propose to prove that you are Sir John
Compton's son ?'f

" By my sword/' cried Jocelyn fiercely,
" either here or elsewhere, against one or all
that dare to question it, if I have his Majesty's
sanction for unsheathing it."

" 'Ods fish ! Arlington," exclaimed the King,
not displeased with the spirit he had evinced ;
" that smacks strongly of the Comptons, for
they were ever ready to draw steel and cast
away scabbard. Tilly vally, man, I'll vouch for
his identity."

" There is no vacancy, Sir, in my depart-
ment," replied Lord Arlington drily.

" Since Ned Cholmely's dismissal," observed
Lady Castlemaine, " the Queen has remained
without a Vice-Chamberlain."

" 'Odso ! well remembered, ~and just the thing,
if the man of the woods has the gift of tongues.

BHAMBLETYE HOUSE. 129

Can you speak French as well as you can sing
it ?" inquired the King, addressing himself to
Jocelyn in that language.

" My long residence in Paris has rendered it
as familiar to me as my native tongue," replied
Jocelyn in French.

" Why then, Monsieur Sylvan," resumed
the Monarch, "call upon Lord Arlington to-
morrow for your instructions. You may inform
your parents, Pan and Dryope, that I have
made you Vice-Chamberlain to the Queen ; and
here is my hand to kiss that we may bind the
bargain."

Dropping upon one knee, Jocelyn touched it
with his lips, and was about to express his grati-
tude, when the King held up his hand, exclaim-
ing : " Prythee, no more speechifying ; 'twas
a pretty scene, but we have had enough. Now,
ladies and gallants, all who are for the Tennis
Court, and will bet upon the King's side may
follow me." So saying, he passed on ; the whole

G5

130 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

of the company followed ; and our hero finding
himself alone, returned to his ambush, doffed
his sylvan dress, and resumed his customary
attire. Before he had completed this transmu-
tation, Lord Rochester returned to congratulate
him upon the success of their project, and the
certainty of his appointment; though he de-
clared he would have had no share in so perilous
an enterprize, had he suspected that Jocelyn
meant to convert it into what the King termed
an assault, by presenting his father's petition.
" However," cried his Lordship," all 's well that
ends well. I am so amazed at your success,
that I shall hardly credit it until it is con-
firmed. Every thing depends upon the caprice
of the moment ; a word from Lady Castlemaine
will instantly turn the scales either for or
against you. Strike, therefore, while the iron
is hot, and fail not your interview with Ar-
lington ; for I see he likes not this appointment
made without his suggestion, and will be glad

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 131

of an excuse to frustrate your promotion. And
now, Mr. Vice Chamberlain, for I am entitled
to be the first thus to salute you, will you reci-
procate the favour you have received, and assist
my advancement as heartily as I have yours?"

" Your Lordship cannot confer upon me a
greater favour than by putting me to the test,"
said Jocelyn.

" Will you, then, call upon me immediately
after your interview with Arlington ?"

" I shall not fail to do so," replied our hero;
" and that appointment reminds me of your
poor prisoners at home. If you think proper to
entrust the key to me — "

" Curse the sorry knaves !" interrupted Ro-
chester ; " think of them no more. 1 shall be
at home some time or other, but it will be
morning first; for I have to sup in Covent
Garden with Buckhurst, Sedley, Etherege, and
Killigrew ; beat up the quarters of Mother
Shipley and her nymphs, where we have ordered

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

the fiddlers to attend ;— take boat at Charing
Cross by sunrise, and drink buttered ale at
Lambeth, for a silver tankard, with Sedley ;
row a wherry to Vauxhall, for fifty pieces, with
Tom Killegrew ; swim back against Buckhurst
for fifty more ;— dress and to the Finish at
Wood's in the Pell-mell ; and so home quietly
to bed. You see the nature of my claims upon
the royal favour ; and as you are now in office,
and bound not to delay one of the Gentlemen of
the Bed-chamber to the King, and the Comp-
troller of Woodstock Park, when he has so
much public business upon his hands, I shall
make no apology for bidding you adieu till to-

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 133

CHAPTER IV.

" England is so idly king'd,

Her sceptre so fantastically borne,

That fear attends her not."

ON calling upon Lord Arlington next day,
our hero received from his secretary the official
confirmation of his appointment, with instruc-
tions to proceed, the next morning but one, to
Hampton Court, for the purpose of being in-
troduced to the Queen, and immediately com-
mencing the duties of his new office. With this
welcome intelligence he hastened to Lord Ro-
chester's, happy that his appointed interview
would afford him an opportunity of renewing
his thanks. He was not yet risen, and Jocelyn
was ushered to his bed-side, when he expressed

134 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

his apprehensions that his lordship's various
wagers and undertakings of the night and
morning might have proved too much for his
strength. " Not'a bit, not a bit," he replied,
" the swim from Vauxhall carried off my drun-
kenness, and enabled me to win all my wagers
and finish in good stile. I am used to these
freaks, have had some sound sleep since, and
feel in better health and spirits this morning
than I have done for a long time. This is pre-
cisely my reason for lying in bed, that I may
preserve them till to-night, when I shall have
still more urgent occasion for them."

" Have you then some fresh wagers to win ?"
inquired Jocelyn.

" Ay, my Faunus, my Sylvan, my man of
the woods, a wager that will make me for life.
Excuse these epithets, Mr. Vice-Chamberlain ;
we will be serious. I have served you in obtain-
ing that office, because I foresaw that I should
want your assistance ; and you are now going

BB.AMBLETYE HOUSE. 135

to return the favour, in the hope of benefiting
still farther by my future influence. Now, pry-
thee don't try to look so ingenuous and discla-
matory ; donH affect to be disinterested, though
I will allow you to be as grateful as you please
for any benefits you may hereafter expect. I
hate a man who is influenced by any thing but
selfishness, or rather that pretends it, for it is
the universal impulse. He who yields to his
feelings veers and vacillates with the whim of
the moment ; he who is governed by principles,
as he calls them, changes his conduct, and tells
you he is wiser to-day than he was yesterday ;
you know not where to have such fellows. Give
me the man who follows nothing but his own
interest. I know how to deal with such a
chapman ; I know that he will be my servant
so long as I serve him. These are my notions :
we understand one another now, Mr. Vice,
as well as if we had been acquainted twenty
years."

136 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

" I will make no professions, since you con-
sider them so suspicious," said Jocelyn, " but
I cannot say that I share your lordship's sen-
timents.5'

" I don't expect you to say so ; few men care to
be so honest as myself ; they may own to a bad
head, but never to a bad heart. My candour
takes an opposite course ; I will acknowledge
my heart to be as black as you please, but I
should be sorry to have my wit impeached. So
much for prologue, and now to the play. Pre-
mising that for your present aid you are to have
the benefit of my future influence, I have to
propose that you should assist me to-night in
carrying off Mistress Mallett, the great beauty
and heiress of Somersetshire, whose fortune of
twenty-five hundred per annum may save many
scores of creditors from leaping out of my ante-
room window, and prove marvellously accepta-
ble to a certain penny less wight yclept John
Earl of Rochester."

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 137

" Surely, my lord, you would not use force,"
said Jocelyn.

" None more than the lady herself is willing to
encounter. The King has repeatedly spoken in
my behalf; the damsel is ripe and ready ; but a
psalm-singing mother, and Lord Hayley an old
dotard of a grandfather, entertain the strange
conceit that I am not sufficiently moral and
religious for a good husband; forgetting that
if there be any truth in the old adage about a
reformed rake, I am entitled to become a ma-
rital phoenix. To this opinion, however, the
donzella herself luckily inclines, so that she has
agreed to elope with me to-night, although she
is so strictly watched that I must carry her off
vi et armis. This method she prefers, because
it saves appearances on her side, while she has
no objection to the compulsion that gives her
the man of her choice for a husband. She is
engaged to a ball at Mistress Stewart's, one of
the maids of honour, as the King still calls her,

138 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

(though he must know better ;) and upon her
return we are to waylay and stop her grand-
mother's coach at Charing Cross. My own
coach with six horses, and two ladies inside to
receive her, will be in waiting to whisk her
away. Some stout well-armed horsemen, who
have been already [provided, will be sufficient
to master Lord Hayley's servants should they
prove rebellious ; but as I would not have the
nymph rudely handled by serving men and
varlets, I wish you to assist me in removing her
from the carriage ; and I warn you not to be
deceived should she deem it necessary for her
own exculpation, to make a show of repugnance,
or even of resistance."

Though by no means pleased with the service
upon which he was to be employed, however
anxious he might be to evince his gratitude,
Jocelyn felt too far compromised to recede, and
consented to join the party. "Provide yourself
then with a good horse," said Lord Rochester ;

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 139

in the loneliest part of the road, near the Tri-
umph Tavern at Charing Cross, you will find
myself and my fellows in attendance at midnight,
(for it will be a late ball ;) we will secure the
Roxalana ; you shall accompany me a few miles
into the country to a house where I have al-
ready appointed a parson to be in attendance ;
and after the marriage we will all return in
grand procession, and sing an epithalamium
under the old lady^s window to one of the psalm
tunes of Sternhold and Hopkins, or Norton and
Wisdome. And this being settled, Mr. Vice-
Chamberlain, I must entreat you to leave me,
for I have much to do. I must borrow the
money to pay for our expedition, unless I can
previously touch the wagers I won last night ;
at two I am engaged to play the mall in the
Park with Harry Saville, and besides I must
positively finish the prologue to the Tragedy of
Valentinian before I begin the farce of Marriage.
So adieu till to-night."

140 BRAMBLETYE HOU5K.

Our hero having engaged a stout steed, pre-
sented himself punctually at the place of ren-
dezvous, where he was not long in discovering
the little troop of horsemen who were to perform
the enterprise, though he found they had not
yet been joined by their leader. Upwards of
two hours did they patrol the road before he
made his appearance, when he at length pre-
sented himself, inquired whether the coach had
yet passed, and upon receiving an answer in the
negative, exclaimed, with a deep oath, that he
feared he should have been too late. " Ha!
Mr. Vice,"" he continued, on recognising Jbcelyn,
" am not I a lucky fellow to be still in time ?
Five minutes ago I would have sold my chance
of the fair one's charms, videlicet, her fortune,
for a pint of Canary, but now I shall still start
for the prize. I have been supping at Covent
Garden, with some choice spirits, where I saw
the rarest exhibition of dancing dogs! one of
them dressed up like the pompous Lord Chan-

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 141

cellor, and another like his stiff-necked daughter,
Nan Hyde, the Duchess of York; but so in-
imitable, so true to the original, so irresistibly
droll, that I sat and shrieked with laughter, till
one of the company mentioned the anecdote of
the dog that bit Buckingham's leg, and his ex-
claiming in the bitterness of his anguish, ' Damn
you ! I wish you were married and lived in the
country.' This luckily reminded me that I was
myself about to be married, so I mounted my
horse, galloped to join Mr. Vice-Chamberlain,
and have fortunately arrived in time."" Jocelyn
would have been surprised that he could indulge
in such foolery, almost in the crisis of so impor-
tant an undertaking, but that he saw he had
been drinking pretty freely ; while he already
understood enough of his lordship's character
to know that any frolic, however wild, would
easily divert him from the most grave and ur-
gent business. Scarcely had he been ten minutes
arrived, and already was he fidgeting about in

142 BEAMBLETYE HOUSE.

that impatient restlessness produced by the ne-
cessity for constant excitement, when one of the
scouts, who had been stationed at Whitehall,
came running up to say that the coach was ap-
proaching. The flambeaux carried by the foot-
men were presently seen advancing towards
them ; Lord Rochester called out to his people
to be upon the alert ; and gave notice to the fe-
males in his own coach, to prepare for their ex-
pected companion. By this time, the equipage
to be attacked had reached the dark spot in
which the horsemen were stationed, when the
whole party rushed forward, instantly stopping
the carriage, and cutting the reins and traces to
prevent pursuit. The sturdy rogues behind, un-
dismayed by the disproportion of numbers, threw
away their flambeaux, and drew their swords ;
but they were presently pulled to the ground
and disarmed. Jocelyn, in the mean time,
opened the coach-door, when Lord Hayley,
who had unsheathed his weapon,' made a push at

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 143

him, exclaiming, " Villain ! what mean you by
this outrage?" Fortunately it passed beneath
his arm, and he found no difficulty in seizing
and wrenching it from the feeble grasp of his
assailant. At the first clashing of swords, the
lady had fainted away, so that Lord Rochester
encountered no opposition, but bore her to his
own carriage, while her grandfather was engaged
with Jocelyn.

The prize being thus successfully secured by
a coup-de-main, which had hardly occupied three
minutes in its execution, the dismounted horse-
men hastily regained their saddles ; the vehicle
containing the rich heiress, for whom so many
noble suitors had been contending, set off at full
speed, guarded on either side by the armed ri-
ders ; while Jocelyn and his Lordship brought
up the rear, keeping at some distance from the
cavalcade, that they might have the first notice
of any intended pursuit. In this manner they
travelled forward with undiminished rapidity

144 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

upon the Uxbridge road, until they had nearly
reached that town, when Jocelyn, in the dark-
ness of the night, missed his companion, and
though he immediately pulled up and called
aloud several times, he received no answer.
Such was the obscurity of the road, that his lord-
ship might easily have passed him unperceived ;
he therefore deemed it not improbable, that
he had pushed forward to join the coach ; and
urging his horse to a full gallop to do the same,
he soon overtook it. The object of his search
was not, however, to be found, and in the midst
of his parley with two or three of the horsemen,
he was utterly astonished at seeing a female
thrust her head from the carriage, shrieking and
calling for assistance, in an agony of distress and
terror that incontestably proved she was no wil-
ling actress in this scene of abduction. Instantly
clapping spurs to his horse, he rode up to the
leading postilion, and compelled him to stop,
when he returned to the coach, imploring its ter-

BEAMBLETYE HOUSE. 145

rifled inmate not to be alarmed, as she was in
the hands of men of honour, and assuring her
that a momentary delay would enable her friend,
Lord Rochester, to come up.

" My friend !" exclaimed the lady indig-
nantly. " If this be his contrivance, as I sus-
pected it was, he is a villain, and a most un-
manly dastard !"

" Is it possible, Madam," said Jocelyn in a
whisper, " that this flight has been undertaken
without your consent ? that you are no party to
his lordship's arrangements ?"

" The very supposition is an insult !" replied
the lady. " If you are the man of honour you
profess to be, I appeal to you as a Christian and
a gentleman for assistance. If it be denied me,
my cries and shrieks in every town through
which we pass shall ultimately ensure my de-
liverance."

" Gentlemen," exclaimed Jocelyn, drawing
his sword, and addressing the horsemen, " we

VOL. II. H

BRAMDLETYE HOUSE,

will go no further in this business : he who pro-
ceeds, does it at the peril of his life. I have been
betrayed and deluded, as much as this lady has
been outraged, and we must seek his lordship,
that we may consider the most honourable me-
thod of restoring her to her friends."

" Certainly, certainly,'1 cried several of the
horsemen, who neither liked the threatened out-
cries of their prisoner, nor this apparent desertion
of their employer — " we must see his lordship :
we will not stand the risk of passing through
Uxbridge, just as the day is breaking, and
on a market-morning : besides, our horses are
blown/1

" Then, remain here while I return to seek
our principal," said Jocelyn : " he cannot be
far behind ; and I am anxious that he should
make some reparation to this lady, by conduct-
ing her back in person, and explaining to her
friends the circumstances of her disappearance.
You must all, I am sure, be as anxious as my-

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 147

self, to stand acquitted of so serious an offence
as a forcible abduction."

" All, all!" cried the fellows, who had be-
come mightily moral as soon as they saw the
enterprize was likely to be abandoned, and that
they had been deserted by their employer.

" Madam," said Jocelyn, bowing to the lady,
" we all pledge ourselves for your safe recon-
veyance to your friends. I go to seek his lord-
ship, and will return to you with all speed."

At these words he hastened back, repeatedly
calling out the name of his missing friend, but
without effect. After proceeding about a mile
in this manner he came to a public-house, and
observing that some of the inmates were stir-
ring, inquired whether any traveller had lately
stopped there. A horseman had alighted, he
was told, some little time before, who called for
spiced Canary, of which he drank three half-
tankards in quick succession, and had then quitted
the house, and struck across the fields opposite

148 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

In the stable Jocelyn immediately recognized the
horse upon which his lordship had been mount-
ed, and instantly set off in pursuit of the rider,
a good deal puzzled to account for this sudden
change of purpose, and not altogether without
apprehension as to the motives which had in-
duced a man, always reckless and desperate,
and now flushed with wine, -to plunge into these
lonesome meadows, in which he noticed several
pools of water. Although the sun had now
risen, he could not see a single moving object,
but his ears served him better than his eyes, and
his forebodings were quickly dissipated by hear-
ing his lordship's hearty and peculiar laugh,
which upon the present occasion was almost
aggravated to a shriek.

Crossing a style in the direction of the sound
he beheld a fold of sheep, with two men leaning
upon the wattles, one of whom was his lordship.
The other was a mountebank quack-doctor, who
having got drunk over-night at a neighbouring

BUAMBLETYE HOUSE. 149

fair, had strayed to the sheep-fold, and imagin-
ing himself, as he leant upon the hurdles, to be
in front of his own itinerant tumbrel, was ha-
ranguing his woollen auditors upon the merit
of his medicines, with a most stolid and grave
absurdity. The vacant look of the sheep, who
had formed a semicircle at a little distance,
and were gazing in his face, the fixed drunken
eye of the orator, staring at the sun as if puz-
zled by the phenomenon, and his tottering
efforts to recover the centre of gravity when-
ever he bowed to his fancied customers, were
rendered still more ludicrous by the solemn
folly of his address. To a dark-faced sheep
whom he individualized as a gentleman of an
atrabilarious temperament, he most urgently
recommended the precious elixir of the phial
which he held, and so saying, he dropped his
tobacco-box at his feet ; upon a ram with large
curling horns, whom he apostrophised as the
worthy magistrate in the periwig, he enforced

150 BRAMBLETYE HOtJSfi.

the necessity of taking a box of his incompara-
ble pills, and accordingly tossed him a bunch of
keys; while a lamb, addressed as the sickly-
looking young lady in white, was intreated with
a maudlin tenderness to take some of his pre-
cious powders, of which he tendered her one in
the form of a clasp-knife. His ridiculous per-
version of long-winded medical terms, his fre-
quent hiccoughs and hesitations as he stopped
to stare with a stupid bewilderment at the sun,
his exclaiming when any of the sheep bleated,
" I will answer that objection presently," and
the asinine anger with which he occasionally
turned to Lord Rochester, and damned him for
a lazy tapster in not bringing him another tan-
kard of humming bub, had occasioned those
shrieks of laughter which had attracted Jocelyn
to the spot, and had afforded a treat to his
lordship that he declared he would not have
missed for all the heiresses in the three king-
doms.

" May I inquire," said Jocelyn, somewhat

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 151

offended at this declaration, " how you dis-
covered this egregious drunkard, and why you
abandoned your party ? "

" As to this inimitable artist," replied his
lordship, (i I stumbled upon him by mere
chance ; and as to my quitting the cavalcade, the
Canary had partly driven it out of my head ;
and when it recurred, there appeared something
so diverting in the dilemma of your all finding,
when your horses were knocked up, that you
had run away with a large live heiress, and
didn't know what to do with her, that I could
not resist the temptation of exposing you to it.
I should have come forward, however, sooner or
later, to relieve you from your embarrasment."

" Your lordship's friends are infinitely ob-
liged to you," said Jocelyn coldly, " and I
would fain know why I was selected for the ho-
nour of being thus deceived and laughted at."

" Why, to deal frankly with you, Mr. Vice,

I have strongly conceited that you will become

great favourite with the King : if I fail in this

BEAMBLETYE HOUSE.

cnterprize I shall need your influence with him,
for I shall probably fall into immediate disgrace.
Nobody but myself can know that you have
been a participator in this outrage, and thus I
have you in my power ; being enabled to effect
your disgrace by disclosure, or by my silence to
ensure your offices in averting my own. These
are the morals at court, where all practise what
I alone avow, because I had rather be a rogue
than a hypocrite. And so having shown you
what an amiable aspect is worn by the human
heart when it throws off the mask ; hey ! to
horse ! Mr. Vice, and let us gallop after the
heiress."

" My lord,1' said Jocelyn sternly,*" I should
express my opinion of your conduct in words
that it would grieve me to utter to a benefactor,
but that there is no time for parley, for yonder
comes the lady's grandfather with two friends.
Defend yourself, my lord, for his sword is drawn,
and I decline all further participation in your
enterprize."

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

"I have always maintained," replied Roches-
ter calmly, " that every man would be a coward
if he dared. That animal courage which we
share with the brutes, I have evinced more than
once against the enemies of my country : that
moral courage which enables a man to defy the
sneers of fools and knaves, I displayed when I
refused to fight Lord Mulgrave : and this
angry old pantaloon shall have no excuse for
scratching my skin, when I would not shed a
thimble-full of blood to purchase the good
opinion of that contemptible nobody, or every-
body, yclept the world. What ! be pinked
through the body for a white-faced chit in a
silk petticoat ! No, not to avoid a thousand
epigrams of Sir Car Scroop."5*

Lord Hayley and his friends having procured

* His lordship probably alluded to one which termi-
nated with the following lines —

" Thou canst hurt no man's fame with thy ill word,
Thy pen is full as harmless as thy sword."

H 5

154 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

assistance at the Horse-guards, and commenced
an immediate pursuit, had made inquiry at the
public-house, where they gained tidings of two
of the fugitives, and hurried across the fields to
seize them. Advancing towards the pursuers as
they approached, Jocelyn told them they might
sheathe their swords, as Lord Rochester sur-
rendered himself their prisoner ; he then in-
formed them, that he had arrested the cavalcade
and carriage the moment he had heard the cries
of Mistress Mallett, and described the exact
spot where the whole party would be found.
After receiving their thanks, he walked at a
brisk pace towards the inn, hearing the most
insulting and opprobrious epithets applied to
his lordship, without their appearing to extort
a single syllable of angry rejoinder, or being
otherwise noticed than by his whistling the
air of a fashionable song. Mounting his horse,
Jocelyn retraced the road to London, utterly
ashamed of the part he had acted in the adven-

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 155

ture, and not less indignant at the manner in
which he had been duped by his lordship, than
amazed at the childish levity, avowed heartless-
ness, want of principle, and inexplicable incon-
sistency of his character.

On the morning after his return to London
he felt more acutely and angrily the embarrass-
ing situation in which he had been placed, for
he learned that the King, in high dudgeon at
Lord Rochester's attempt, after having himself
condescended to interfere with the lady in his
behalf, had instantly ordered his committal to
the Tower ; a measure which was expected to
be followed by his banishment from court, and
the loss of all his preferments. A word from
his lordship would instantly blight the budding
honours of the Vice-Chamberlain ; and he had
the mortification to find his fortunes in the
power of a man, who possessed an utter disre-
gard to moral obligation, and whose uncalcu-
lating caprice might lead him to divulge «ven

156 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

that which his governing principle of self-in-
terest would have rendered it prudent to sup-
press. It was obvious, however, that nothing
could be at present gained by Jocelyn's inculpa-
tion ; and in the hope that the part he had acted,
under his first erroneous impression, would re-
main unknown, he betook himself on the follow-
ing morning to Hampton Court, conformably
to the orders he had received.

The royal party, he found, were gone on a
water-excursion, an opportunity of which the
Queen's gentleman-usher availed himself to
instruct him in his duties, and show him the
apartments of the palace, particularly those
appropriated to her Majesty. In her dressing-
room he saw the gold cup presented to her by
the city upon her arrival, and the massy toilet
of the same material, made for her by the
King's orders, at an expense of four thousand
pounds. Thence he was ushered to the Queen's
bed-chamber and closet, in the former of which

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 157

was the magnificent bed of crimson velvet em-
broidered with silver, which the States of Hol-
land had presented to the King upon his re-
storation. In other respects the room was suffi-
ciently plain, being fitted up with pious pic-
tures and books of devotion ; a receptacle for
holy water was adjusted to the head of her bed,
by the side of which stood a large clock, pro-
vided with a lamp to show the hour in the
night-time; and in one corner of the room,
amid others of rare Indian manufacture, was an
ebony cabinet inlaid with silver, which upon
touching a spring opened, and was converted
into a Prie-dieu, furnished with a crucifix, a
little altar, a missal, and every customary or-
nament and appendage of the Romish worship,
but all of a diminutive size. In passing through
the apartments he encountered some of the
Guard-Infantas, or Portuguese maids of honour,
whose forbidding looks, olive complexions, and
preposterously unbecoming dresses, seemed -to

158 BltAMBLETYE MOUSE.

afford abundant evidence that they had not
been selected, like their English sisters, for their
personal recommendations. Two friars, who
stood in the window of the next apartment, in
black robes and cowls, with ropes about their
waists, and sandals upon their naked feet, eyed
them with a scowl as they passed, and then re-
newed their conversation in a low v/hisper; so
that our hero, in spite of the rich ornaments in
the dressing-room, thought there was something
peculiarly gloomy in the grandeur of these
apartments, and concluded that their mistress
must be of an austere and bigoted turn.

Of the Monarch most assuredly no such opi-
nion would be formed, from a contemplation of
the chambers appropriated to his purposes of
state or privacy. Here every thing was mag-
nificent and joyous, for all had been splendidly
refitted and furnished since the Restoration.
Here every thing betokened that the gay and
effeminate Sybarites had succeeded to the
stern and solemn men of iron. Hangings de-

BftAMBLETYE HOUSE. 159

signed by Raphael, and richly wrought with
gold; unrivalled tapestries, among which the
story of Abraham and Tobit was particularly
admired ; rare pictures, especially the Caesarian
Triumphs by Mantegna, formerly belonging to
the Duke of Mantua ; the gallery of horns, with
its huge antlers of stags, elks, and antelopes;
the great hall gorgeously decorated ; the chapel,
whose fretted roof had been newly gilt ; the
wardrobe of tents and other furniture of state ;
were all admired in succession ; while from the
windows of the palace they were enabled to view
the improvements making in the park, part of
which was laid out for a hare-preserve, while
in another a canal was being dug, shaded by
plantations of lime-trees. In the garden was a
rich and noble fountain, adorned with syrens
and statues, cast in copper by Fanelli, and ter-
minated by a parterre known by the name of
Paradise, in which was a banqueting-house, set
over a cave or cellar.

Upon entering the presence-chamber he found

160 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

that the maps, plans, and statistical tables, which
had been hanging there upon his former visit,
had been replaced by portraits of the wanton
beauties who figured in the court of the licen-
tious Monarch, or formed part of his acknow-
ledged seraglio ; while the closet, with its volup-
tuous paintings and lascivious works, intermixed
with cabinet pictures by the first artists, and
rare antiques that evinced a taste for the purer
specimens of art — its miniatures and plays, its
costly knick-nacks and gew-gaws, its trinkets
and trumpery, presented a no less striking con-
trast to its state when he had visited it with
Colonel Lilburne. Even in the most sumptu-
ously furnished apartments of the palace, spa-
niels and lap-dogs of all descriptions were allow-
ed to litter and feed their puppies, spoiling the
chairs and rich carpets, and tainting the air with
their filth ; so that from the mixture of nastiness
and magnificence, the visitor might rather fancy
himself to be in the camp of an Asiatic satrap,

BEAMBLETYE HOUSE. 161

than the palace of a refined and polished mo-
narch.

But a little time had elapsed, after his having
completed this inspection of the royal apartments,
when he was summoned to be introduced to the
Queen, who had now returned from her excur-
sion. So much had been said of her homeliness,
and the sight of her apartments had so impressed
him with a notion of her austerity, that he was
not less agreeably surprised by her personal
appearance, than by the cheerful courtesy with
which she received him. In the former respect
she fully justified the description of an eye-
witness, who, speaking of her Majesty and her
Portuguese ladies, says, " She was yet of the
handsomest countenance of all the rest, and
though low of stature prettily shaped, languish-
ing and excellent eyes, her teeth wronging her
mouth by sticking a little too far out ; for the
rest lovely enough." Expressing herself obliged
to the King for providing her a Vice-Chamber-

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

lain, with whose services she doubted not she
should be well content, she informed him that,
as it was the Sabbath, and she should be en-
gaged during the remainder of the day with her
confessor, or in the religious observances of
the chapel, she would dispense with his further
attendance until the morrow. Some of her
foreign attendants, apparently struck with Joce-
lyn's fine figure and noble countenance, seemed
to intimate by their glances that they could have
been well pleased to retain him among them ;
but if such were really their wishes, there was
no reciprocity in the object of their admiration,
who looked with some distaste upon their dark
complexions and ill-favoured features ; and whose
thoughts were still pre-occupied by the large
lustrous eyes he had seen at the Carousal at
Paris, though he now almost despaired of ever
encountering the lovely being to whom they
belonged.

At night he betook himself to the King's side

£R AMULET YE HOUSE. 16B

of the palace, where he understood there was to
be a select ball, stationing himself in the ante-
room in order to have a view of the visitants,
as well as to obtain a peep into the ball-room.
Several of the most illustrious noblemen and
ladies passed into the festive chamber, the for-
mer gallantly attired for dancing, the latter as
resplendent as beauty, emblazoned by jewellery
and rich dresses, could make them. From time
to time, when the door opened, he gazed into
the illuminated saloon, where waving plumes,
sparkling diamonds, bright eyes, buzzing voices,
and merry music glittered before him and filled
his ears for a moment, to be suddenly shut out
from both, like a flitting pageant, when the
double folding-doors were again closed. From
the officers of the palace and members of the
household by whom he was surrounded, he did
not receive such a courteous return to his ad-
vances towards acquaintanceship, as he could
have wished, their answers to his inquiries being

164 BEAMBLETYE HOUSE.

mostly confined to a cold monosyllable. He
was a new comer, a personage always eyed
with jealousy in a court; and such were the
parties and factions into which the whole esta-
blishment was divided, that they deemed it pru-
dent to stand aloof until they had ascertained
whether or not the Vice-Chamberlain were pa-
tronized by the King and Lady Castlemaine,
or selected by the Queen. In the former alter-
native his friendship was to be courted ; in the
latter it might be prudent to avoid too great
an appearance of intimacy. Among those that
passed was Lord Arlington, who evidently re-
cognized him, for he frowned as he saw him, and
went forward without further notice. Jocely n re-
membered what Lord Rochester had said about
the probable hostility he would have to encounter
from this nobleman; and already foreseeing that
he should be exposed to all the supplanting
intrigues of a court, he determined to disarm
malevolence by an irreproachable discharge of

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 165

his duties, and at all events not to merit any
disfavour, even should he be unable to avert it.

While our hero was thus occupied he heard
voices behind him crying — " Fall back, gentle-
men ! fall back ! make way for his Grace !" and
looking round he beheld several servants in the
royal livery, who arranged themselves on either
side, making a lane through which passed a
youth in a splendid court-dress, with a diamond
George sparkling on his breast, and the garter
round his knee. It was his friend Crofts, with
whom he had become acquainted in Paris ! If
any thing could have added to his surprise at this
discovery, it was the manner of his friend's recep-
tion by the King, which he had an opportunity of
witnessing through the door- way. His Majesty
hastened up to him as he saw him approaching,
embraced him with smiles of welcome, and re-
tained him in close conversation as long as Joce-
lyn could observe them. On inquiry he learned
that the supposed Crofts was the King's na-

166 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

tural son by that identical Lucy Barlow for
whose miniature Sir John had been despatched
to Dunkirk ; that he had only been entrusted to
Lord Crofts for his education ; had discarded
that name upon his arrival in London ; and was
now Duke of Monmouth, and the favourite of
the King, who it was thought by many would
declare his legitimacy, and ultimately make him
heir to the throne.

Before his astonishment at these tidings had
subsided, the young Duke returned to the ante-
room, to despatch one of his servants for some
article that he had left in his apartment, and,
spying Jocelyn, hurried up to him with open
arms, inquiring to what lucky chance he owed
the pleasure of seeing him at court. Our hero
mentioned the nature of his appointment, con-
gratulated his friend upon the eminent station
he had so unexpectedly attained, and expressed
a fear that the great difference of their present
rank might almost render it presumptuous, were

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 167

he to claim a continuance of their former in-
timacy.

( What ! are you prepared to, accuse me be-
forehand ?" exclaimed the Duke, "when you
yourself are the first to exhibit pride in your
very humility. You shall not shake me off so
easily, master Jocelyn : so, come along, and let
me introduce you to the King as one who was
my earliest playfellow, and I hope will be my
latest friend." Thus saying, he put his arm
familiarly within Jocelyn's, led him into the
dancing-room, and presenting him to the King,
related in a few words his adventure in the
Luxembourg-gardens, the issue of the Carousal
at Paris, and the former friendship that had
existed between them. " I' faith, Mr. Vice-
chamberlain, or rather Sir -Guy of Warwick,"
exclaimed the King gaily, " I must look to my
Queen, now that she has such a doughty cham-
pion at her elbow. One who has overset the
Duke of Anjou, and unhorsed a Bohemian baron,

168 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

before he wore a beard, may well win the citadel
of a lady's heart, when grown so stout a man at
arms as thou art. By my sword and sceptre !
as you have been the protector of this young
scrape-grace, you shall have all the honours of a
champion, for a monarch shall be your master
of the ceremonies, and the fairest damsel in the
court your partner."

So saying, he clapped his hands, and calling
out to the band to play the old English country-
dance of " Cuckolds all awry," led up Jocelyn,
and introduced him to Lady Castlemaine ; select-
ed the Duchess of Buckingham for himself; and
bidding the Duke of Monmouth and the other
dancers to take their places, led off the set, ac-
quitting himself with that grace and elegance
which rendered him confessedly unrivalled in all
personal accomplishments. Lady Castlemaine,
whose brilliant beauty little needed embellish-
ment, was in a perfect blaze of jewels, their
value being estimated at upwards of fortv

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 169

thousand pounds. She appeared highly satisfied
with her partner, addressing him with a lively
and sparkling familiarity, which proceeding from
so lovely a* woman, radiant with all the splen-
dours of nature and art, would have perhaps
intoxicated his senses, had he not been duly
impressed with the exalted station which she
occupied in the favour and affections of the
Sovereign. More than once he tnought she gave
him a most significant pressure of the hand,
which he had not the presumption to attribute to
any thing but accident upon her part, or mistake
upon his own ; although any one who had been
more conversant with the loose character of the
lady, or the licentious manners of the Court,
would have put a different interpretation upon
these tender overtures.

No sooner had the company reseated them-
selves after the conclusion of the dance, than a
bustle was heard at one end of the room, whence
the courtiers came flocking up towards the King,
two or three attired as heralds, crying aloud as

VOL. II. I

170 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

they advanced—" Make way ! fall upon your
marrowbones ! hide your faces ! prostrate your-
selves upon the ground, and lick the dust ! for
here comes the most high, mighty, and puissant
Bashaw, Edward Earl of Clarendon, Lord High
Chancellor of England, and Sovereign de facto of
the three kingdoms, to the grievous wrong of the
King de jure, Charles the Second, whom God
preserve!" Behind these sham heralds, who
were well known to be some of the court merry-
andrews, marched Sir Thomas Killigrew, bearing
with infinite gravity a brass-handled poker, in-
tended to represent the mace ; and Lord Ashley,
with a monstrous pumpkin for the great seal ;
next came the Duke of Buckingham, dressed up
as the Lord Chancellor ; and the procession was
closed by two or three others carrying a huge
paper mushroom, a pasteboard figure of Lucifer,
and another of an owl, intended to typify the
sudden growth, inordinate pride, and solemn
starchness of the Chancellor, of whose features
the two latter presented a grotesque likeness.

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 171

On arriving before the King, the sham Chancel-
lor proceeded to read him a sharp lecture upon
his idle and licentious courses, in which he in-
troduced a satire upon the whole Court, men-
tioning several of the auditors and bye-standers
by .name as his principal instigators, accusing
them of all the little peccadilloes and intrigues
that formed the prevalent scandal of the day ;
and throughout preserving the pompous car-
riage, solemn voice, peculiar phrases, and even
the very look of the original, with such inimita-
ble felicity, that the Monarch and his company
were convulsed with laughter. Buckingham
himself was the only one that preserved his gra-
vity ; holding up his head with a burlesque
dignity, casting a stern look at the King, and
strutting out of the room in the same majestic
procession with which he had entered.

A second dance now commenced, in the pro-
gress of which Lady Castlemaine invited her
partner to a ball, which she was about to give at
her apartments in Whitehall ; adding that she

172 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

could now afford to be gay, as the King had
lately presented her with thirty thousand pounds
to pay her debts. Alluding to Lord Rochester's
enterprize, which indeed formed the leading
subject of discourse, she expressed a; vehement
indignation at his insolence ; and hoped that the
author of the outrage, and every one of his ac-
complices, would be visited with a signal punish-
ment. Poor Jocelyn blushed deeply at this
avowal, stammered out a faint assent, and en-
deavoured, though not without considerable em-
barrassment, to turn the conversation. Distin-
guished as had been his reception, and flatter-
ing as were his prospects, he saw clearly that he
stood upon the edge of a precipice, and already
began to experience some of the anxieties of a
courtier's life.

Two or three pavans and courantos having
succeeded to the country-dances, the company
betook themselves to various games and amuse-
ments, th<s King himself being seated at chess
with Brouncker ; when the parties who had

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 173

enacted the little pageant we have described,
returned in their own clothes, and, gathering
themselves into a circle at a little distance from
the Monarch, although "within his hearing, pro-
ceeded in their incessant plot for undermining
the only able and upright minister he possessed,
in order that they might engross the King en-
tirely to themselves.

" Is it true that the Court goes to Tunbridge
this summer ?" inquired the Duke of Buck-
ingham.

*' Most unquestionable," replied Lord Ashley.
" Dr. Sibthorpe declares it is the only chance
for the Queen."

" Then we may consider it as settled," added
Fitzharding.

" Settled !" cried Sir Charles Berkeley. " You
must be aware, gentlemen, that every thing in
England depends upon the Chancellor giving
his consent."

" Oh ! of course ! of course !" cried several
voices at once : " nothing without that."

174 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

" I understand the pompous prig hates Tun-
bridge," said Lord Lauderdale.

" Then there 's an end of the whole scheme,"
observed the Duke of Buckingham ; " for the
King dare not call his soul his own, without
permission from the Great Seal."

" What a pity," exclaimed Bab. May, " that
a Monarch who has ten times more wit and
talent in his little finger than that solemn ass in
his whole numscull, should thus submit to be
led by the nose !" ,

" Perhaps," added Lord Arlington, " as his
Majesty has done so much for him, and con-
sented to his daughter becoming Duchess of
York, he may be prevailed upon to give his con-
sent to the excursion, and allow the King to go."

" And the hypocritical insolence," cried Fitz-
harding, " of his presuming to twit his Majesty
with his pleasures, when it is well known that
the old fellow is in private as wanton as a goat.
Fifty guineas to five-and-twenty, that we shall
have no Tunbridge-wells. Who says done?"

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 175

All this had been uttered in a kind of whisper-
ing voice, but loud enough to reach the King ;
who turning round exclaimed, in a half-ban*
tering tone : — " Gentlemen, I like not to be a
listener ; so that if you have any more imper-
tinence to vent against the Sovereign, you had
better move out of ear-shot. 'Ods fish ! ye
varlets ! what mean ye by this balderdash ? I •
put confidence in Clarendon, because he is an
honest man and a good, and keeps aloof from
such wild, loose, and deboshed companions as
yourselves. But as to my judgment, I surrender
it to no man ; nor will I suffer any one, whoever
he may be, to interfere with either my preroga-
tive or my pleasure."

This was all that the intriguers wanted.
They §aw that the King's pride was piqued ;
they knew by experience, that he would oppose
the very next measure recommended by the
Chancellor, however incontestable its utility,
merely to prove his independence ; and they
foresaw, that by first rendering the minister con-

176 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

temptible by this ridicule, and then stimulating
the King's jealousy by their artful cabals, they
should ultimately procure his dismissal.

" Brouncker !" said the King rising, " I am
tired of this chess, for I suspect I shall lose
the game. Come, ye saucy libellers ! which of
ye are for the tables? which of ye will chal-
lenge me for a hundred pieces, and let me punish
his pocket in revenge for his over-bold tongue ?
What say you, Fitz? Is it to be ombre or
bassett, portico or lansquenet, with the King ;
or a game of cribbage with that simple Tom-
otter, Lord Chandois ?"

:' Bassett with your Majesty for a hundred
pieces !" replied Fitzharding and several others
at once.

The tables were rapidly wheeled up ; the rest
of the courtiers, both male and female, followed
the royal example ; the pulvilio'd purses were
produced, and Jocelyn was presently surrounded
by tables covered with rouleaus and piles of
gold, which were lost and won upon the turning

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 177

of a card As the hour waxed later, this re-
creation was abandoned ; and while cordials and
refreshments were handed round, the arrange-
ments of gallantry and intrigue seemed to be
carried on with little or no concealment. The
ladies threw out all their blandishments, and
flirted openly with their lovers ; the King, after
passing some time in dalliance with Lady Castle-
maine, sauntered away to toy with some other
beauty ; two eunuchs and a French boy were
introduced, who sang the most impassioned
amorous songs ; and the conversation assumed a
freedom, not to say a licentiousness, at which
our hero was somewhat startled. In the court
of Louis the XlVth he had indeed witnessed
a stately and magnificent gallantry ; but it was
modified by refined and decorous observances,
which, if they did not alter its real features,
at least invested them with a becoming veil.
Elegant without being effeminate, and fond of
pleasure without neglecting business, that
monarch was decent in his very vices. Here
i 5

178 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

the licentiousness was gross, open, and im-
blushing; unredeemed by talent or applica-
tion in public affairs; unpalliated by a single
form of delicacy in the manner, and little
scrupulous as to the merits, rank, or station of
the object. The profane oaths of two dicers
behind Jocelyn, who were still wrangling at their
game, suggested to him how much more strik-
ing was the profligacy of the scene he now
beheld, with its wantons, dancers, and dicers,
sycophants, pimps, and pandars, buffoons, flat-
terers, and swearers, when compared with the
entertainment given in this identical palace by
the Lord Protector, whose companions and the
ornaments of whose court were such men as
Milton and Marvcll. To crown the contrast, he
called to mind, that the prayers and religious
observances upon that occasion were in sanctifi-
cation of a week-day ; while the indecent revels
that he now contemplated were in open profana-
tion of the Sabbath.*

* Lest this picture should appear to be overcharged,
the following authorities are subjoined :

• BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 179

" May 31st.— I was told to-day, that upon Sunday
night last, being the King's birthday, the King was at
my Lady Castlemaine's lodgings, (over the hither gate
at Lambert's lodgings,) dancing with fiddlers all night
almost ; and all the world coming by, taking notice of
it." — Memoirs of Pepys, vol. 1. p. 296.

" Nay, she (Lady Carteret) told me that they have
heretofore had plays at court the very nights before
the fasts for the death of the late King." — Id. p. 470.

If it be objected that these are only on dits, we have
the following unimpeachable testimony of the virtuous
Evelyn, an eye-witness of the scene at Court on the
Sunday before the King's death.

" I can never forget the inexpressible luxury and
profanenesse, gaming and all dissoluteness, and as it
were total forgetfulnesse of God, (it being Sunday even-
ing,) which this day se'night 1 was witness of; the King
sitting and toying with his concubines Portsmouth,
Cleaveland, and Mazarine, &c. ; — a French boy singing
love-songs in that glorious gallery, whilst about 20
of the greate courtiers and other dissolute persons were
at bassett round a large table, a bank of at least 2000
in gold before them : upon which two gentlemen who
were with me made reflections with 'astonishment. Six
days after was all in the dust." — Memoirs, vol. 1. p. 585.

180 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

CHAPTER V.

Who hunts, doth oft in danger ride ;

Who hawks, lures oft both far and wide ;

Who uses games, shall often prove

A loser ; but who falls in love,

Is fetter'd in fond Cupid's snare :
My angle breeds me no such care.

Iz. WALTON.

FORTUNE now seemed to smile propitiously
upon our hero, and to promise him a sure career
of brilliant and uninterrupted success. The
friendship of the Duke of Monmouth, the
patronage of the King, the favour of the all-
powerful Lady Castlemaine, formed a combina-
tion of favourable circumstances, and gave a dis-
tinguished eclat to his debut, such as perhaps
no young candidate for courtly honours and
preferments had ever before been enabled to

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 181

boast. Naturally sanguine, he indulged the
most flattering anticipations of advancement ;
while it was evident, by the altered demeanour
of those who surrounded him, that they were t
not less confident of his success than himself.
Even Lord Arlington, supercilious as he had
been in the ante-room, had no sooner observed
his reception in the saloon, than he hastened
up to him, his whole countenance radiant with
smiles ; solemnly protesting that it gave him a
singular satisfaction to congratulate him upon
his appointment, and declaring that he should
only be too happy in serving him. Several of
the King's companions and other grandees had
imitated this example ; and as to the members
of the household and subordinate officers, they
seemed determined, by their present sycophancy,
to atone for their former reserve and distance.
Most of them informed him that they had from
the very first prophecied his good fortune, and
they were therefore the less surprised to find
their predictions verified. Some began already

182 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

to speculate upon the extent of the favouritism
he would enjoy, offering wagers that he would
get a title, like Sir Harry Bennett, within a
twelvemonth ; and pointing out the great pro-
bability that he would speedily be as richly en-
dowed as Lord Fitzharding, to whom the King

s

had granted not less than twelve thousand pounds
a year, merely because he had taken a fancy to
him. They were sure he deserved it infinitely
more than that empty popinjay ; and, concluding
by professing themselves the most humble ser-
vants of Mr. Vice-Chamberlain, they humbly
ventured to solicit his future protection and
good offices.

Although too penetrating to be elated by
this sordid flattery, Jocelyn was highly gratified
by the prospect of being able to serve his father.
He resolved, however, to confirm the promising
impression he had made, before he hazarded a
solicitation of any sort, and at all events to
avoid a second application to the King, now that
he knew his vehement objection to any kind

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 183

of petition founded upon past services, which
implied something like a reproach. It was only
where there was no claim that he was spon-
taneously lavish. Our hero, therefore, rather
turned his thoughts towards the Lord Chan-
cellor, by whose interference he hoped to ob-
tain an early decision of the Brambletye law-
suit, and a restoration of the property so ini-
quitously withheld. This once accomplished, it
was his determination, if Sir John approved
the scheme (of which there could be little
doubt), to purchase the voluntary emigration
of the Dutch Lady Compton, or to compel her
to a separation upon a reasonable allowance for
a maintenance. The repair of the dilapidated
family mansion, and the restoration of his father
to all the comforts and luxuries of his former
establishment, formed the background of the
prospect which was thus pleasantly developing
itself to his mental eye. Now and then, indeed,
the recollection of his sinister affair with Lord
Rochester passed over it like a cloud ; but as

184 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

several days elapsed without hearing of him,
and the transaction itself began to blow over,
his confidence gradually returned, and his spi-
rits rose with the increasing probability of his
realizing all his hopes.

In the discharge of his official duties he ac-
quitted himself with a zeal and assiduity that
appeared to be gratefully acknowledged by his
royal mistress, who treated him with a marked
affability and kindness. Independently of the
distinction with which she honoured him, he
could not avoid feeling a deep interest in the
fate of this unfortunate and unoffending prin-
cess, who had apparently been married merely
for her dowry, and was already most grievously
neglected and wronged by her husband. The
humiliation she must have experienced by his
publicly abandoning her for his concubines,
almost immediately after their marriage; the
ridicule to which she was exposed from his
loose companions, although they had shared in
the plunder of her jointure ; the charging her

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 185

with forty thousand pounds per annum, in the
accounts laid before Parliament, although she
had not received more than a tenth part of that
sum ; her deserted and solitary situation in a
strange country, with whose language she was
unacquainted, and to the majority of whose in-
habitants her religion was odious ; all conspired
to awaken in him that respectful attachment
by which every generous heart is warmed at the
sight of unmerited misfortune, more especially
where the sufferer is a female and a queen.

In a short time after the commencement of
his official employment, her Majesty intimated
her intention of ^giving a rgrand evening enter-
tainment, for which preparations were made on
an extensive scale of stately splendour. Upon
her arrival in England, the King had ordered
the name of his mistress, Lady Castlemaine, to
be put down in the list of presentations to her
at Court, but she had with her own hand run
her pen through the obnoxious entry ; and, upon
its appearing a second time, had complained to

186 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

the King of the insult, requesting that he
would either abstain from any further attempt
at bringing her into the presence of that wan-
ton woman, or send her back to Portugal. She
even declared that she would never have quitted
that country, had she been aware that she
should be exposed to a solicitation of that
nature, or expected to descend to such de-
grading companionship. This she might well
consider a sufficiently spirited and explicit
avowal to deter him from any renewal of the
attempted indignity ; but Charles, though pli-
able enough in all matters of state, was self-
willed and obstinate in every thing that re-
garded his p ersonal gratification ; while he was
at the same time so absolutely under the domi-
nion of the imperious Lady Castlemaine, that
he dared not disobey even her most absurd and
extravagant mandates. That haughty woman
insisted u^on being made one of the Queen's
ladies of the, bed-chamber ; and the King not
only wrote to the Lord Chancellor (who had

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 187

implored him to abandon so odious a measure),
swearing that he would accomplish it ; but re-
solved to get over the difficulty of a presentation
by introducing her himself to the Queen. For
the perpetration of this unfeeling outrage, the
evening entertainment she was now about to
give appeared particularly adapted, since it was
sufficiently numerous to make the fact gene-
rally known, and would ensure the triumph of
Lady Castlemaine in a more pointed and ob-
servable manner, than if it occurred amid the
bustle of a drawing-room at Whitehall.

The appointed evening had now arrived : no
preparation for giving splendour to the enter-
tainment had been neglected by the Queen's at-
tendants ; and the King, as if anxious to grace
it with additional magnificence, not only ordered
his own band to be in attendance, as well as the
yeomen of the guard, but sent in some costly
ornaments for the decoration of the supper-
table. So little had the Queen been latterly ac-
customed to any attentions of this sort, that

188 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

she was not less surprised than gratified at their
occurrence, attesting the pleasure she received
by the gracious smile with which she greeted
the King upon his entrance, and the unusual
cheerfulness of her manner towards all her
numerous visitants. With a youthful vanity
(which, however, he excused to himself by at-
tributing it to respect towards his royal mis-
tress), Jocelyn buckled to his side the splendid
sword presented to him by the King of France,
and took his station near the state-chair in
which the Queen was seated, whence he con-
templated the gay scene before him with the
greater delight, as the numerous attendance
seemed to be an act of homage from the Court,
to which her Majesty had been but too little
accustomed.

The room was beginning to be thronged :
glittering dresses, sparkling "diamonds, and more
brilliant eyes, all emblazoned by the profuse
light of the silver chandeliers, flit ted before him
in dazzling confusion ; when Killigrew hastened

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 189

up, with a look of burlesque terror, exclaiming,
" Sauve qui pent ! fly for your ears ! for hither
comes the inexhaustible, the never-silent, the
omniloquent Lady Babington, whose tongue has
at last discovered the perpetual motion. Even
gentle George* whom she caught by the button,
cut himself from it with a penknife, and ran for
his life. If she would only talk by the hour-
glass as the Puritans preached,^ we might sub-
mit ; but fly ! I charge ye once more, all ye who
would save your ears from being drenched with
the torrent of her sempiternal silliness."

* A name by which Sir George Ether ege was known.
He was sometimes also called Easy Etherege.

t In those more religious, or more patient times, the
Puritan ministers generally preached an hour by the
glass, which was either affixed to the pulpit, or to some
conspicuous part of the church, and afforded many an
apposite allusion to the preacher. The celebrated Hugh
Peters, " the religious buffoon," as he has been termed,
after having completed the prescribed period in one of
his sermons, exclaimed to his congregation — " As I see,
my brethren, that you are all good fellows, I am sure
you will not object to take another glass with me." He
turned it accordingly, and indulged them with a second
hour.

JQO BllAMBLETYE HOUSE.

At first Jocelyn imagined that this was the
introduction to some new mummery, such as he
had witnessed in the King's party, and that the
apparent terror with which the auditors fled at
the announcement was but to give effect to the in-
tended joke. But he was soon undeceived by the
apparition of a tall, thin, eager-looking woman,
whose long chin and lank jaws seemed toJiave
been attenuated by their own incessant motion.
Making up directly to her victim, she exclaimed
in a sharp and rapid voice, " Ah ! Mr. Comp^
ton, how do ? saw a strange face, so asked who
it was, and found you out. Knew Sir John
many years ago ; understand he has married a
Dutch vrouw ; how very odd ! He ! he ! — La !
I wonder I can laugh, having so lately lost my
poor sister Fanny ; only buried last Thursday
week. Sir John has often played at ombre
with her at Grinstead House. Dare say you
think I'm very dull, but assure you I'm gene-
rally the life of the company. Heigho ! isn't it
shocking to wear black crape and bugles, when

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 191

all the world 's so gay in colours and diamonds.
There 's Lord Arlington with his staff of office.
How do. Lord Arlington ? well, I do think that
frightful black patch upon his nose gets bigger
and bigger.* Poor Fanny ! it was only last
month — there goes Lord Oxford! you have heard
of course that he has taken the Roxalana off the
stage. However, she had a handsome funeral,
a much finer sight than the presentation of the
Muscovy ambassadors at the Banqueting-house.
She was always my favourite sis — La ! what a
splendid sword you have got ! are they real dia-
monds ? Ah, Sir Charles Sedley ! how do, how
do ? Did you ever hear such a shocking affair
as his and Lord Buckhurst's at Oxford Kate's P
They fined him 500/. though, and made him
give bond for 5000Z. for his future — Gemini !
what a delicious smell ! Oh Count de Gram-
mont! I could have sworn to the essence of your
perriwig. Is it frangessan, or calembue, or

* From an honourable wound received in the civil
wars, he was always obliged to wear a black patch.

192 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

ambrette ? You promised me a fillagree casket
of mille-fleurs, and to fill my silver flask with
tuberose from Marechal's. Oh you traitor ! to
forget me ! Only think, Mr. Compton ! 'tis but
three weeks since poor Fanny and I — that's
silly old Lord Chandois ; I really wish he
wouldn't sing psalms so horribly out of tune at
Whitehall-chapel. — My dear Mrs. Wells ! de-
lighted to see you ; how beautiful you 're look-
ing ! what sweet silk stockings with gold clocks
and charming little diamond buckles ! Allow
me ; one of your cr£ve-cceurs, or meurtrieres as
some call them,* have fallen a little too near the
confidantes.-)- What superb point-d'Espagne
cornets !J There, that will do nicely. Did you
get any thing by Sir Arthur Slingsby's lottery at
Whitehall ? No more did I ? What a hurry
you are in ; good bye. — Is it true, Mr. Comp-
ton, that the King has left her for Mrs. ?

* Two small curled locks at the nape of the neck.
t Small curls near the ears.

pinners falling about the cheeks.

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 193

By the bye, have you seen the new coin with
the likeness of Mrs. Stewart in the figure of
Britannia ? Well, poor Fanny, as I was telling
you — I'm sure I never saw her look better in
my life. — I shall never think of the day without
crying — He ! He ! do for Heaven's sake look at
the Duchess of Newcastle ; was there ever such
a figure ? She has never altered her dress since
she sang, ( Like the Damask rose,' and danced
the Canaries, Selenger's Round, or the Spanish
Pavan, thirty years ago. Have you seen her in
the Mall with her two black pages, in velvet li-
veries, to hold up the fringe of her Spagnolet ?
How do, Duchess of Buckingham ? Vastly well,
thank ye. What a beautiful diamond Venez-a-
moi.* By the bye, Mr. Compton, have you
seen my new liveries, cinnamon suit, lined with
philamott-coloured mohair, silver buttons, and
a broad mixed lace of carnation, black, blue,
gold, and white ? Isn't it pretty ? I've been
up all night reading poor Fanny's will : couldn't
* A breast-knot so called.

VOL. II. K

194 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

eat a mouthful of breakfast : when the heart '»
full, you know — Heigho ! — How do you like
the Fontanges curl ?" *

This being the first break or pause that had
occurred in her ladyship's voluble effusion ; for
she never waited for an answer to any of her nu-
merous interrogatives, and none of the other
parties, whom she attacked en passant, had
stopped to encounter a second volley; Jocelyn
made a bow of departure, hoping to effect his
escape. But the delight she experienced in get-
ting hold of a new listener, particularly one who
had heard nothing of poor sister Fanny, was too
keen to be so easily relinquished, and nothing
less than Sir George Etherege's desperate ex-
pedient of cutting himself from his button would
have accomplished Jocelyn's liberation. " La,
Mr. Compton," continued his garrulous persecu-
tor, " I forgot to show you my mourning-ring ;
that 's poor Fanny's hair. — How do, Lord Suf-
folk ? So the King and Sir Arthur beat you and

* A top-knot introduced by the lady of that name,
one of the mistresses of Louis XIV.

BEAMBLETYE HOUSE. 195

Chesterfield at tennis this morning. — Isn't it
prettily set ? What do you think of this strange
story of the invisible drummer in Mr. Mom-
pesson's haunted house, and Glanville's book
upon the subject? — How do, Sir Car Scroop?
How do, Lord Bristol?— Isn't it a mysterious
affair ? — Were you at St. George's Feast at
Windsor ? Wasn't it pretty to see the Duke of
Monmouth dancing with the Queen with his hat
in his hand, and how fondly the King kissed him
and made him put on his hat ? Are you fond of
dancing ? — so am I. But I can't now, you know.
I ""m sure, if poor Fanny had been aware of this

ball, she wouldn't have Heavens! here comes

Lady Castlemaine quite loaded with jewels.
Well she may, when the King has lavished upon
her all the Christmas presents made to him by
the Peers. Have you seen Lely's picture of her,
and did you hear of her squabbles with Lady
Gerrard and the Duchess of Richmond?""*

* The latter told her she resembled Jane Shore in
person, and expressed a hope that she might come to the
same end.

K 2

196 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE*

Jocelyn now perceived, that the King was
leading Lady Castlemaine by the hand, and in
the bustle occasioned by the advance of the
knot of courtiers that followed them, he con-
trived to slip away from his loquacious tor-
mentor. Her ladyship was even more resplendent
with jewels, and arrayed with more gorgeous
magnificence than when he had danced with her
in the King's apartments. Many, as she came
forward, curious to witness the result of this
experiment upon the Queen's patience, followed
the party until they approached her chair, when
the King presented by name his titled concubine^
who bowed proudly, not to say disdainfully to
her royal rival. To the utter amazement of the
whole circle, her Majesty graciously returned
the salutation ; pronouncing in a foreign accent,
the few words of English with which she had
been taught to greet her visitants. — " I am glad
to see you."

The King led away his mistress, who walked
off with a statelier step than usual, her fea-

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 197

tures flushed with the public triumph she had
just achieved; while a buzz ran through the
chamber, and the words " pitiful wretch,"
" mean-spirited creature," and " unfeeling
idiot," were liberally applied to the unfortu-
nate Katharine by the profligate minions of the
King, who were ever seeking to malign her, as
some sort of justification for the conduct of
their unprincipled master. In point of fact,
however, the object of their rancour was per-
fectly unconscious of the indignity she had
sustained. Never imagining, that her husband
would offer her this public insult in her own
apartments ; and utterly unable, from her igno-
rance of the language, to distinguish names and
titles, she had not caught the sound when Lady
Castlemaine^s was mentioned; but presuming
her to be some female of the high nobility, had
contented herself with admiring her beauty, and
the rare sumptuousness of her dress.

This tranquil ignorance was not, however,
long to continue. An old Portuguese Duenna,

198 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

who filled the high post of " Mother of the
Maids," and knew Lady Castlemaine by sight,
approached the royal seat, and whispered the
startling fact in the Queen's ear. The effect
was electric. The rage and jealousy which had
hitherto lain rankling in her heart exploded at
once : all the proud blood of Braganza rush-
ed to her face : she bit her under-lip so as to
leave the mark of every tooth deeply indented
in the flesh : her eyes flashed fire : and as she
convulsively clutched her hands together, she
looked fiercely round for her audacious rival.
The King, after having led her off, was at that
moment paddling with her hand, under pretext
of examining one of her diamond rings. Stung
almost to madness at the sight, the Queen
started from her seat, and was hurrying towards
them, when she was suddenly overcome by the
violence of her feelings. She stopped short ; the
blood gushed from her nose ; she sunk back-
wards in a fit, and would have fallen to the
ground, but that Jocelyn, who followed close
behind, luckily supported her in his arms.

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 199

Confusion and consternation now spread
rapidly through the apartment. Her Por-
tuguese attendants crowded around her with
looks of fury, uttering passionate exclamations
in their own language, and vowing vengeance
against the insulters of their mistress. Too
angry and too clamorous to afford any effectual
assistance themselves, they rudely pushed aside
the English ladies, who hurried forwards to
tender their good offices ; so that Jocelyn was
left unaided, though still surrounded by the
wrathful Portuguese, in bearing the royal suf-
ferer from the apartment. Revived for a mo-
ment by the air of the corridor, and relieved by
a gush of tears, she was enabled, though leaning
nearly her whole weight upon his arm, to reach
the door of her own chamber, when he en-
trusted her to her attendants, desiring that
messengers might be instantly expedited to pro-
cure medical assistance. .

Although constitutionally choleric, Jocelyn
had never been affected with a more intense in-

200 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

uignation than by his outrage upon his royal
mistress, which he felt even more than if it had
been personal to himself. The public and wan-
ton nature of the insult, after the wrongs she had
so long and so patiently sustained ; the sight of
her blood, which made an appalling display upon
her white satin dress ; her tears, so overcoming
in fl,ny young and unhappy female, so irresistible
in a queen, had combined to exasperate him
to the uttermost. In this irritable mood he
encountered in the corridor one of the King's

cup-bearers, named Bagot, with whom he had

• *

formed a slight acquaintance in the palace, and
who swelled the list of those youthful profligates
that imitated the example of the Monarch,
and of course defended -him in all his dissolute
courses.

" Hoity-toity, Mr. Vice !" exclaimed this
flippant minion — " prythee, what intends black
Katharine by these freaks and whimsies ? That
she should show her teeth, is no wonder, for we
know she cannot help it ; but that she should

BIIAMBLETYE HOUSE. 201

attempt to bite, savours somewhat of the fatu-
ous and foolish."

" If, by these impertinent phrases, you mean
her Majesty,1" said Jocelyn, provoked at the al-
lusion to her defective mouth, " there is mat-
ter enough for her illness, for she has received
a most gross and scandalous insult; an insult
which would have been unmanly in a stranger
and a clown, but which, coming from a hus-
band and a king, is infinitely more base and
unworthy."

" Is it to his Majesty that you presume to
apply these treasonable terms ?" inquired Bagot.

" Were he ten times a king I would say it,"
cried Jocelyn.

" His Majesty may chance to know how loyal
a Vice-Chamberlain his Queen possesses," said
Bagot. " Your words are sharp, sir."

" So is my sword." cried Jocelyn, laying his
hand upon the hilt.

" That remains to be proved," retorted his op-
ponent. " I have known many a spark forward
K 5

BEAMBLETYE HOUSE.

with his tongue, who was a laggard with his
weapon. The bully and the craven are no such
inconsistent characters."

" Have you the insolence to apply these words
to me ?" inquired our hero, fiercely.

" If you think they fit you, you are welcome
to wear them," replied Bagot.

" Then I accept them," cried Jocelyn ; " and,
to prove that I deserve them, take this in my
character of bully :" so saying, he struck him
across the mouth with his glove, which he after-
wards tossed in his face. " And now, sir, for
my character of craven, I leave you to name the
weapon and the place where I may establish my
title to that appellation also."

" Arrogant varlet !" exclaimed Bagot, " this
is no place, or I would chastise you on the spot.
Meet me with your sword at sun-rise, to-morrow,
behind the gladiator, in the middle park, and I
will wash out this insult with your blood."

" The craven will be waiting for you,41 said
Jocelyn, with an angry sneer.

BHAMBLETYE HOUSE.

" Be it so r cried bis adversary, " behind the
gladiator — do you know the spot ?"

" Depend upon it, I shall find you out," re-
plied our" hero; arid with these words the en-
raged disputants parted, Bagot withdrawing to
his own apartment, and Jocelyn walking along
the corridor, still chafing with indignation.

Almost unconsciously, the latter again turned
into the saloon, where he found, that the King
having retired with Lady Castlemaine, in high
dudgeon at the Queen's exposure of herself, as he
termed it, the party had suddenly broken up,
only a few of the visitants being left, who were
gathered in little knots, and whispering together,
apparently upon the subject of the recent occur-
rence. Among those who were still sauntering
about the room by themselves, was the Duke of
Monmouth, who, putting his arm within Joce-
lyn's, took several turns up and down the apart-
ment, and expressed his regret at the Queen's
indisposition, for which, however, he did not
seem to be aware that there was any particular

204 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

cause. He invited his friend to sup with him
in his own apartment, since they had been disap-
pointed of the repast provided by her Majesty ;
an honour which Jocelyn could not well decline,
though he would rather have been master of his
own time, as he wished to write a long letter to
Sir John. The immediate necessity of providing
a second for the encounter of the morrow formed
an embarrassing point, upon which he had some
thought of consulting the Duke, although he
doubted the propriety of implicating him in any
way in the quarrel, lest he might communicate
it to the King, or take other measures for the
prevention of the meeting. Monmouth had now
withdrawn to his own apartments ; Jocelyn had
promised to follow in a short time, and was re-
volving in his mind the probability of his pro-
curing a companion in the field, or the possibility
of his appearing without one, when he was ac-
costed by Mark Walton, one of those intriguing
fortune-hunters, who filled a subordinate station
%bout the court, and was ever watching and lis-

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 205

tening for an opportunity of currying favour with
any body whose good opinion might be turned
to account. He had witnessed Jocelyn's fami-
liarity with the Duke, he had heard the invita-
tion to supper given and accepted ; and thinking
it a favourable opportunity for ingratiating him-
self, he smirked up to our hero, exclaiming, " If
I were in such high favour as you, Mr. Vice-
Chamberlain, I should never look so serious and
thoughtful."

" I am serious," replied Jocelyn, *' because I
have a serious favour to ask, and know not ex-
actly where to apply myself."

*c If none but the Duke can perform it," said
Walton, " you need not fear ; for I am sure he
can refuse you nothing, and I am equally cer-
tain, that nothing will be refused to him."

" It rests not with the Duke," said Jocelyn ;
" it requires neither interest nor rank ; any man
can perform what I require ; but my residence
in the palace has been so short, and my ac-
quaintance with any of its inmates is so very
slight "

206 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

" My dear sir," exclaimed Walton, interrupt-
ing him and pressing his hand, " I have already
declared how happy I should be, hdw much flat-
tered I should feel, in being allowed to call my-
self your friend. If I can serve you on the
present occasion, pray command me freely."

" I accept your offer," said Jocelyn, " with as
much frankness as it is tendered, and beg that
you will in return reckon confidently upon my
good offices so long as I remain in the court.1'
He then stated that he had unexpectedly quar-
relled with Bagot, that he had appointed to meet
him next morning, and was unprovided with a
second, in which capacity he would gladly avail
himself of Walton's proffered assistance. Ex-
pecting that it was to have been some service of
a much more insignificant description, the latter
was a good deal startled at this declaration.
However, as he felt that he had committed him-
self too far to recede, and calculated, moreover,
that he should secure the friendship of Jocelyn,
whose brilliant career at court every one had

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 207

confidently anticipated, he put a good face upon
the matter, and professed his readiness to attend
him. It was arranged that they should meet
at Walton's apartments, which opened into the
Park ; and Jocelyn having thanked him for his
friendly alacrity, withdrew to keep his appoint-
ment with the Duke of Monmouth.

In spite of all his efforts to get away, he was
detained till a late. hour by his young and hi-
larious host, who already began to exhibit his
father's bibulous and convivial propensities.
Upon his return he wrote a long letter to Sir
John, detailing the circumstances of the quar-
rel, and hoping he should not forfeit his good
opinion, whatever might be the issue of the con-
test. By the time this was completed, the night
was so far advanced that he determined not to
go to bed, but to sit up until he went to sum-
mon his second. At a little before daybreak he
accordingly proceeded to Walton's apartments,
whom he found waiting for him, when they
sallied into the Park, reaching the statue of the

208 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

gladiator just as the sunbeams, darting through
the openings in the chesnut-trees, glittered upon
the bronze head of the figure. They had hard-
ly gained the spot when Bagot and his friend
came up, and both parties saluted one another
courteously. " Mr. Bagot/' said Jocelyn, " this
quarrel is personal to ourselves ; I have always
reprobated the absurd practice of making seconds
act the part of principals ; and it is my earnest
request, that however the encounter may termi-
nate between us, it may not compromise either
of these gentlemen, who have so kindly come
forward as friends and umpires."; " In that re-
spect," replied Bagot, your wishes coincide per-
fectly with my own. — Gentlemen," he continued,
addressing himself to the seconds — " you hear
our mutual desire ; be pleased to conduct your-
selves as witnesses, not as antagonists." The
parties, thus directed, bowed in acquiescence.

Jocelyn, who had retained his diamond hilted-
sword, now gave it to be measured ; the lengths
corresponded, the weapons were respectively re-

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 209

turned, and the combatants took their station
in front of one another. Though subject to fits
of choler, and capable of sudden violence when
under their influence, our hero was neither
revengeful nor blood-thirsty. His passion had
long since evaporated ; he regretted the quarrel '
more and more, as he reflected upon the conse-
quences to which it might lead ; and hoped by
disarming his antagonist, to avert the threatened
mischief, and yet terminate the fray with honour
to himself. His skill in this particular man-
oeuvre, which he had long practised under the
unrivalled Du Plessis, gave confidence to this
expectation, and he determined to execute it, if
possible without wounding his adversary. But
Bagot, who was himself a pupil of Monsieur
Foubert,* and almost as expert a swordsman
as his opponent, not only baffled his attempts,
but succeeded in wounding him slightly in the
shoulder ; so that Jocelyn now endeavoured to

* The passage from Regent-street, that formerly led
to his Academy, still retains his name.

210 BEAMBLETYE HOUSE.

disable his enemy's sword-arm, so as to finish the
contest with the least possible effusion of blood.
Pressing vigorously forward for this purpose,
he compelled Bagot to recede several steps, until
his heel coming in contact with the root of a tree,
he staggered backwards and fell to the ground.

" Recover yourself, Sir," said Jocelyn, drop-
ping the point of his sword ; " I can take no
advantage of so brave an adversary."

" I acknowledge your courtesy," said Bagot,
as he rose up and placed himself on his guard,
" but the insult I have received admits of no
compromise. Defend yourself, Sir." So saying,
he pressed forward with so furious a lunge, that
the sword of Jocelyn, which was directed against
Bagot's right arm, unfortunately passed complete-
ly through his body, and he again staggered and
fell helpless on the grass. " I am badly wound-
ed," he exclaimed — " wounded, I fear, to death ;
but your conduct has been fair and honourable.
Fly, Sir, while you may ; for the King is pos-
sessed of the obnoxious terms you applied to

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

him. You are dismissed and disgraced, and he
has given orders for your being this morning
arrested."

Declaring his deep regret at the serious na-
ture of the wound which he had never any in-
tention to inflict, Jocelyn refused to quit him
until he had conveyed him to a surgeon's in the
neighbouring village, which he persisted in do-
ing, in spite of Bagof s repeated request, that he
would lose no time in providing for his own es-
cape. Having discharged this painful duty, he
began to think of obeying the advice, although
utterly at a loss to know what measures to adopt,
or in what direction to fly. In this emergency,
his second recommended that he should conceal
himself for the present in a ruinous grotto of
the park, promising to return shortly with a
change of clothes or some disguise, that might
enable him to take boat unsuspected, or travel
on foot to London, the best place for avoiding
immediate discovery.

To this forlorn building did Jocelyn accord-

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE*

ingly betake himself, lying perdu for two or
three hours, and his suspense aggravated by
receiving no tidings from his second. In the
interval he had full leisure to reflect upon his
situation, which presented itself to him in the
gloomiest and most forbidding colours. Inde-
pendently of his remorse ; at the probable death
of Bagot, he found himself, by one intemperate
sally of passion, hurled down from the promising
eminence he had attained, all his fond hopes of
assisting his father and advancing himself utterly
blighted, and the envied Vice-Chamberlain con-
verted into a skulking and disgraced fugitive.
Had he awaited the appearance of his second,
his release from the grotto would have been
remote enough ; for that calculating personage,
learning upon his return to the palace the origin
of the quarrel, and the orders that had already
been issued for Jocelyn's arrest, was filled with
a profound horror at being implicated in the
transaction, and determined not to incur any
further responsibility by being instrumental in

BHAMBLETYE HOUSE.

his escape. Anxious, however, that he should
abscond, in order to stop further inquiry, an<l
conceal his own participation in the duel, he
revealed the whole in confidence to the Queen's
gentleman-usher, suggesting that as Jocelyn had
thus embroiled himself from his devotedness to
her Majesty, she ought to facilitate his getting
away until the King's wrath was appeased. Wal-
ton was not deceived in his calculations. The
gentleman-usher conveyed the whole affair im-
mediately to the Queen, who declared her reso-
lution to protect her chamberlain and champion,
for which purpose she desired her informant to
adopt immediate measures ; pledging herself not
only to bear him harmless in whatever he might
undertake with this object, but to reward him
handsomely for his interference. Putting into
his hand one of the gold medals struck upon her
arrival in England,* together with a small mi-

* Stamped in compliment to the Queen, with a figure
of St. Catharine at length, holding a sword, point down,
in her left hand ; a palm in the right ; and inscribed —
" Pietate insignis."

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

mature of herself, to be presented to Jocelyn in
her name, she bade him lose no time, but pro-
ceed instantly to execute his commission.

Fortunately for all parties, the agent thus
selected, whose name was Tracy, was a shrewd
and intelligent man, who set about the business
entrusted to him with judgment and despatch.
Carrying with him a sad-coloured horseman"^
cloak, russet boots, and a slouched hat, he
presented himself at the grotto, delivered the
Queen's presents as his credentials, disguised
Jocelyn in the clothes he had brought, and
bidding him instantly follow, led the way to
a neighbouring village. Here they provided
themselves with horses belonging to the Queen,
and, riding off at a smart pace, made a circuit
round the outskirts of London into Essex, strik-
ing through Hackney and across the marshes,
until they reached the lower part of Waltham-
stow. In this sequestered and melancholy re-
treat stood a lone mansion, belonging to an uncle
of Tracy's, a merchant in the city, who had

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

formerly inhabited it, though it had been now
left for some time to the care of an old gar-
dener and his wife. Such were the humble
companions to whom Jocelyn was introduced as
a friend of their master, whom adverse circum-
stances, and a fear of his creditors, had reduced
to the necessity of a temporary concealment.
" Be cautious," said the usher, on taking leave
of our hero ; " confine yourself to the house as
much as possible, and do not expect any imme-
diate release, for both the King and Lady Cas-
tiemaine are bitterly incensed against you ; while
the Duke of Buckingham, to whom young Ba-
got is related, has been heard to swear, that he
will have your blood if his kinsman dies. So
that you have the three most powerful people
in the kingdom for your enemies, and only the
Queen, who is a mere cypher 'in the state, for
your friend. As to the King, however, he is of
a generous and forgiving temper, easily offended
and easily appeased. Buckingham is too va-
cillating in his humours to be steadfast in any-

216 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

thing, and may profess himself your devoted
friend, in the very midst of his resentment, from
pure love of inconsistency': but Lady Castle-
maine is a steady hater, and will, I fear, pursue
you with unrelenting rancour. However, we
will do our best to allay the storm. I will com-
municate with you from time to time, to put you
in possession of our progress ; and in the mean-
while, make yourself a voluntary prisoner, if you
wish to avoid becoming one upon compulsion."

With these words he departed, leaving our
hero in possession of a gloomy old family man-
sion, which required not the aid of his present
circumstances to give it very much the air of
a prison. The high wall by which it was sur-
rounded, the massy gates of entrance secured
by cross-bars of iron, the court-yard overgrown
with grass, the projecting oriel- windows, whose
diamond panes of glass were dim and dirty, and
the forlorn deserted aspect of the whole exterior,
were calculated to inspire a melancholy, which
the dark oak-panneled rooms inside, some of

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. S17

them hung with decaying portraits of ancient
Aldermen and Lord Mayors, the civic ances-
tors of the proprietor, were little likely to dissi-
pate. Depressed in spirits by these gloomy
objects, Jocelyn wandered into a garden, ren-
dered damp and dismal by the height of the
sun-excluding wall, and the over-grown boughs
of two mournful cypresses. There was a rusty
sun-dial in the centre, whose moral inscription
about the perishableness of all earthly things
had long since begun to confirm its own asser-
tion ; the fish-pond was thickly encrusted with
a green mantle ; the hornbeam maze, in which
the children of former occupants had been de-
lighted to lose and puzzle themselves, had shot
out into one impervious mass of vegetation ;
while the moss-covered gravel-walks, and the
rank weeds in all directions, attested that the
gardener was either too old for his office, or
considered it to be altogether a sinecure. Little
exhilarated by the sight of this neglected wilder-
ness, he returned into the house, consoling him-

VOL. II. L

218 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

self with the reflection that it was at least a
place of refuge, and better calculated for his
present purposes than if it wore the more cheer-
ful air appertaining to a mansion of habitual
resort and habitation. Not having been in bed
the night before, he retired to rest at an early
hour in the afternoon, gladly forgetting in sleep
the unfortunate circumstances which had made
him a fugitive, as well as the doleful aspect of
the asylum that had been chosen for him.

During the whole of the next day he was
left to his own meditations, which, as it may
be easily imagined, were not very consolatory.
He often adverted to the caprice of fortune,
which, while he was anticipating danger from
his affair with Lord Rochester, had suddenly
overwhelmed him from another quarter; and
though his sentiments as to the King's con-
duct remained unaltered, he felt the necessity of
curbing those sudden effusions of passion to
which he was liable, and of putting a greater
restraint upon his tongue, more especially

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 219

within the dangerous purlieus of a palace;
although he thought it very unlikely that he
should ever have an opportunity of revisiting
one. On the second day of his confinement,
the Queen's usher again presented himself,
bringing tidings of an inauspicious character.
Bagot had been given over by the surgeons who
attended him : Buckingham was in comsequence
more furious than ever against his antagonist,
for whose apprehension he had promised to
reward the officers ; the King had apparently
already forgotten him, having filled up his ap-
pointment, and not having been heard to make
any further allusion to his offence ; but Lady
Castlemaine had been seen in consultation with
one of the serjeants-at-arms, who had imme-
diately afterwards set out for Brambletye,
whither it was concluded she had despatched
him in the hope of arresting the object of her
resentment. From the Queen he brought the
most condescending expressions of good-will,
and an assurance that she would stand his

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

friend, and exert herself to procure his restora-
tion to favour, as soon as the first animosity
against him had a little cooled: but as there
were no present indications of any such abate-
ment, Tracy concluded with again recommend-
ing a strict seclusion, and took his departure.
Another long, dull, and solitary day ensued,
which the prisoner was not at all sorry to termi-
nate as before by betaking himself to bed.

While he was dressing himself at an early
hour on the following morning, the old gardener
hurried into his room with alarmed looks, to
inform him that there were three men thunder-
ing at the great gates, who declared they had a
search-warrant, and demanded immediate ad-
mittance. There could be no doubt, he added,
that they were the sheriff's bailiffs, and he there-
fore urged Jocelyn to make instant escape by the
garden-gate, of which he delivered him the key,
bidding him be sure to lock it after him, make
for the ferry, and hasten to London ; while he
promised to give him a good start by keeping

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

the rogues kicking their heels at the gates as
long as he dared. Losing no time in following
this advice, Jocelyn huddled on the remain-
der of his clothes, ran down stairs, opened the
garden-gate, which he took care to lock after
him, and found himself in the fields, quite at a
loss which way to turn, having in the hurry of
the moment forgotten to inquire the direction
of the ferry.

As he could not, at all events, venture to-
wards the opposite side of the house where his
pursuers were stationed, he struck away from
them across the field, presently falling into a
hollow lane, concealed by a hedge on either
side, along which he ran with good speed, not
doubting that it conducted to the ferry. After
having pursued it, however, for some time, he
came to a point where it diverged in two op-
posite directions. In the fork of the branching
roads stood a remarkably neat little cottage,
having a small garden in front, in which an old
man was busily tending some choice flowers.

222 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

To this personage Jocelyn addressed himself,
inquiring which of the ways led to the ferry.

" Ay, so I hear, so I hear," cried the old man,
who was so deaf that he could not hear a syllable ;
— " they do tell me King Charles has come in
again some years agone ; what d'ye think o'
that, eh ? though, for my part, I see no great
difference atween him and King Oliver, for the
rain and the sunshine come all the same ; here 's
the same earth," he continued, stamping upon
it, " to raise me up my flowers : and there sits
the same God," (pointing to the sky,) " to send
me down his blessings.'1

Jocelyn put his mouth to the old man's ear,
and repeated his inquiry in a bawling tone of
voice, which, hdwever, only elicited the same
reply.

" Ay, so I hear, so I hear. Only to think o'
that, eh ? A fine misty morning. — Charming
dews for my ranunculuses and anemones, but too
heavy for my mealy auriculas, so I keep them

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

covered up. But come this way, come this way,
and I '11 show you the queen of my garden."

He hobbled along as he uttered this invi-
tation, not hearing the flight of Jocelyn, who
darted down one of the lanes, vexed at having
wasted his precious moments upon such a deaf
old dotard, as he peevishly called him. " And
yet," he observed, moralizing to himself as he
hurried forward, fi the fellow is in some respects
to be envied. Shut out by his deafness from
participating in all the wrangling bitterness
of his fellow-creatures, he derives his present
pleasures from the earth, and his final hopes
from Heaven, neither of which are likely to dis-
appoint him. He is independent and happy ;
while I "

This apostrophe would, probably, have as-
sumed a very eloquent and didactic turn, but
just at this moment he was seized with a sud-
den misgiving about the road he had select-
ed, which appeared to terminate at no great

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

distance in a large dung-heap. This proved to
be the case ; and, on attempting to advance
beyond it, he found his progress arrested by
the swampy ground of the marshes, so that he
began to apprehend he should be obliged to
measure back his steps, and pursue the other
branch of the lane. At so critical a moment,
nothing could well be more vexatious than such
an alternative, especially as he could perceive
the river Lea meandering tranquilly through the
level, at no great distance beyond him. Just as
he was about to turn back, a partial dispersion
of the mist disclosed to him an angler a little
higher up the stream, quietly pursuing his sport
beneath a clump of lime-trees. By making a
little circuit he contrived to reach the spot ; and
hoping to find him a more competent guide
than the deaf old florist, he accosted him cour-
teously, inquiring in what direction he should
find the ferry.

"It is lower down the stream," replied the
stranger, a hale-looking personage, although

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

considerably stricken in years ; " and neither
very near to reach nor inviting to seek. Unless
you know the way blindfold, I recommend your
waiting till the mist, which is apt to hang over
the marsh, be a little dissipated: now that
the waters are out, there are ugly swamps and
bogs on one side, and the reedy pit-falls of the
river on the other, which have proved sore
traps to the marsh-men, and have more than
once occasioned strangers to find a watery
death."

Jocelyn thanked him for his caution, but
declared that the juncture was too urgent to
admit a moment's delay ; adding, that there was
at least a chance of his escape by reaching the •
ferry, whereas if he remained, he was sure of
being arrested.

" Arrested!1' exclaimed the stranger. "What!
are the bailiffs abroad ere the lark has finished
piping her matins? — Well they may, when
folks outrun the constable in the day-break of
their youth. Fie ! young man, fie ! When the
L 5

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

mist blows away, you may be seen for a mile
along the flats ere you gain the ferry. But you
shall be neither hooked nor netted if I can pre-
vent it ; whatever you may have hitherto been,
we will transform you forthwith into a brother
of the angle."

As he ended this speech he opened a large
basket, whence he took a violet-coloured camblet
roquelaure and a rabbit-skin cap, exclaiming : —
" Here is my foul- weather wardrobe: doff your
upper trappings and put on these.'1

Jocelyn did as he was ordered; his own
cloak and hat were concealed in the basket : the
stranger put an extra fishing-rod into his hand,
and bidding him seat himself by his side, ex-
claimed : — " There ! if any peering knave denies
that we are a couple of honest anglers, fond of
the sport, and haunters of the running stream
when it first opens its eyes to the sun, there is
one of us at least that can boldly say him nay.
Said I not that the vapours would presently roll
away? See how the cattle become gradually

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

visible ! first dimly and indistinctly seen, like
faint sketches of future vitality, or appari-
tions of that which has passed ; but sending
their lowing voices lustily through the mist, to
relieve us of our doubts, and assure us of their
perfect existence. See too, yonder, how the
waters flash and the landscape smiles farther up
the river, as the sunbeams chace away the mist!
Is it not as if we saw Nature herself lifting up
the veil from her beautiful face, and looking
out upon us with sparkling eyes and laughing
features ? Is it not as if we were watching the
progress of a creation — seeing a new and glorious
world gradually forming itself out of the void?
We shall have a delightful morning for our
sport; one that will justify my son Cotton's
assertion : —

( A day without too bright a beam,

A warm but not a scorching sun,
A southern gale to curl the stream,
And, master, half our work is done/

Who can be seated upon the banks of the clear

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

and tranquil Lea, enjoying so delicious a day-
break as this, and not feel his heart expand with
gratitude towards the Creator, and benevolence
towards all his creatures ?"

As the heart of the angler thus ran over with
amiability, he was very benignantly impaling
a live frog upon a hook, to which he afterwards
sewed its flesh, for the purpose of torturing a
fish to death, without a single motive for either,
but his own momentary gratification. Jocelyn
was struck by the inconsistency ; but as the
stranger's conduct was at least marked by hu-
manity towards himself, he forebore from all
comment, took the fishing-hook which had been
thus compassionately provided with a living
bait, cast it into the stream, and endeavoured to
assume the deportment of a watchful and pa-
tient angler. Hasty footsteps were presently
heard approaching, which he doubted not to be
those of his pursuers, — an apprehension spee-
dily converted into certainty, when a strange
voice thus accosted his companion : u What !

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

Master Izaak Walton, up so early, and busy at
the old sport of rod and line, when younger men
by a score years or more are still hugging their
pillow ! Gadzooks ! thou 'rt a staunch angler,
and one that deserves good sport. Hast seen
aught of a runaway gallant in a sad-coloured
cloak, with a slouched hat ?"

" Master Ingleby, Master Tngleby !" replied
the conscientious Izaak, boggling at a direct
falsehood, yet not scrupling an evasion, " I
thought you knew the author of the Complete
Angler too well to ask such a question. I keep
my eyes upon my float ; and when I thus shut
out the earth and its inhabitants, and give my
looks and my thoughts to the calm heavens re-
flected in the waters before me, I trouble myself
little about sad-coloured cloaks and slouched
hats. Have I not called the noble art of angling,
' The Contemplative Man's Recreation ?' "

" We must be close upon his flight, however,"
said Ingleby, " for his nest was warm ; but yet,
when we reached it, gone was our bird."

230 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

" The chap must have made for the ferry,"
observed one of the men ; " we had better push
forward, and we shall be sure to nab him when
this plaguy mist blows off."

" Then, prythee, move away as quickly as
you list," said Izaak ; "for the fish like not the
shadow of your bodies, nor the sound of your
voices. Silence and solitude are the angler's
best bait. I should not have a companion, but
that he ever holds his tongue and minds his
rod/'

" What sport have you had, Master Walton?"
inquired Ingleby, making towards the basket,
as if to open it ; while Jocelyn gave himself up
for lost, if the lid should be raised.

" Not a fish, not a fish have I or my comrade
caught this morning," answered Izaak calmly ;
and at the same time taking the basket, he quiet-
ly seated himself upon it, exclaiming, " These
heavy dews make the grass long a drying ; I
have done wrong to sit upon it. — Why, look ye
there, comrade ! look ye there ! you have a rare

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

bite, and a jack, sure as fate, by the pulling, if
it prove not a great chuckle-headed chubb. Was
ever such a bungler ! Is that the way you handle
your reel ? Psha f tug not so, man, or you break
the line ! give him play, give him play, let him
pouch the bait, and then strike him smartly.
Hand me the rod quickly, or all will be lost.
Now, Master Ingleby, if you '11 only wait a
quarter of an hour or twenty minutes, I will
instil into thee, my friend, Tom Barker's ap-
proved method of catching a jack."

" I shall not catch mine if I do," replied In-
gleby ; " and so, Master Walton, I must e'en
wish you good day and fair sport." At these
words, the Serjeant and his myrmidons moved
off, to the great relief of Jocelyn, who liked not
the invitation, and little expected that, in his
eagerness to display his own skill, the worthy
angler should so completely forget the jeopardy
in which he was placing his friend. As the old
gentleman sate for some time enjoying the strug-
gles and agonies of his hooked prey, humouring

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

and toying with the line, Jocelyn was no longer
amazed at his indifference about the frog, when
he found that he took even less interest in
saving a fellow-creature than in destroying a
fish. " Tush, man !" he exclaimed to Jocelyn,
as he saw him preparing to go away — " You will
not surely budge till you have helped me to
secure the jack. Take this landing net, and
pass it under him as I draw him towards the
shore."

" But if the men should return — " said Joce-
lyn, looking in the direction they had taken.

" Psha ! mind not the men ; let us first pre-
vent the escape of the jack, and it will be time
enough afterwards to think of yours," replied
the amiable angler.

This magnum opus being at last accomplished,
and the piscatory tormentor having gloated for
some time over the victim of his lingering cru-
elty, and deposited it in his basket, Jocelyn was
again preparing to depart, for which purpose he
requested his hat and cloak. — " Harkye, young

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. £33

man," said Izaak as he handed them to him,-—
" you have heard my name ; let it go no fur-
ther, for though I would have saved you from a
bailiff, I little deemed you were pursued by a
serjeant-at-arms with a King's warrant. I med-
dle not with such matters, but have ever learnt
to obey c pastors and masters, and all that are
in authority over us.' Learn thou too, to fear
God, honour the King, and love thy fellcw-
creatures ; and with this advice, as I desire no
fellowship with violators of the law, I say unto
thee, as Micaiah said to Ahab, c Go and
prosper ! ' '

Jocelyn expressed the warmest gratitude for
the assistance he had received, declaring that
it was doubly acceptable from so celebrated a
person as the admired author of the Complete
Angler. — " My good young man !" exclaimed
Izaak, taking him by the hand, while his whole
countenance beamed with satisfaction, " you do
me honour. I shall be happy to be better ac-
quainted, that I may give you some instructions

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

in the noble art, wherein, tp say the truth, thou
art but a sad and sorry tyro."

" I fear I shall ever continue so," replied our
hero, who was no admirer of the " noble art:"
and with these words again bowing to his pre-
server, and thanking him, he retraced his steps
towards * the lane, for the purpose of regaining
the house, where he thought he should be safe,
at least for the present, and might consider at
better leisure how he should dispose of himself
for the future. The old gardener welcomed
him back to his hiding-place, which began to
assume a less cheerless aspect when he consi-
dered it as a probable refuge from the Gate-
house, a dismal receptacle to which he had not
the smallest inclination to be a second time con-
signed.

In the course of this day he received another
visit from the Queen's usher, to whom he related
his adventure. " I am not at all surprised at
it," replied Tracy, for I observed a horseman
following me last trip, and methought the same

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. £35

fellow was dogging me to-day. Your lair is
discovered, and no time must be lost in changing
it. England will soon be made too hot to hold
you : are you ready for a trip to Holland ?"

" As soon as you please," replied Jocelyn.—
" Then let us seize time by the forelock," said
his companion, and trust to our heels for a flight
to Bow-bridge, where we can take boat for
the Thames. Anticipating the necessity of this
measure, T have already secured your passage
with the skipper of a Dutch galliot ; and will
take care, before you sail, to procure you such
a letter of introduction from my uncle the mer-
chant, as will ensure you a welcome reception
in the land of dykes and dams." Crossing the
country at a brisk pace, they reached the destined
point without obstruction, where they entered
a wherry ; and Jocelyn was in due time put on
board the vessel, being introduced to the captain
as a young man going out as clerk to the great
merchant of Rotterdam, Adrian Beverning.
Having delivered to the fugitive a purse of gold

236

BEAMBLETYE HOUSE.

transmitted by the Queen, and promised to send
his luggage and effects from Hampton Court,
as well as the promised letter of introduction,
Tracy took his departure ; leaving our hero to
meditate upon the strange vicissitude which had
thus unexpectedly compelled him to exchange
the luxuries of a palace for the abominations of
a small Dutch galliot, whose crew were at that
moment surrounding a pot of boiled peas and
pork, while the whole vessel was enveloped in a
fog of steam and smoke, and perfumed with the
mingled odours of pitch, "pork, tobacco, and red-
herrings.

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE

CHAPTER VI.

" These things to hear

Would Desdemona seriously incline;
But still the house affairs would draw her thence,
Which ever as she could with haste dispatch
She'd come again, and with a greedy ear
Devour up my discourse."

SHAKSPEAKE.

IN this miserable floating hovel, obliged to
participate in the coarse fare, and submit to the
coarser fellowship of boozing mer-men ; with
no occupation by day, and an old ticking stuffed
with pea-shells for his bed at night ; did Jocelyn
pass the greater part of a most uncomfortable
week, until his effects arrived from Hampton-
Court, as well as his credentials from Tracy's
uncle. Tracy himself did not again make his
appearance, suspecting that all his movements

238 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

were watched, and apprehensive that by this
means an embargo might be placed on the vessel,
or an officer sent on board who would infallibly
curtail the travels of the pretended merchant's
clerk. The cargo was now completed ; and our
hero, anxious to escape from the wretched gal-
liot, in which he was the only passenger, gladly
saw the hatch battened down, the mooring rope
cast off, and the sails hoisted. As if to atone
for the previous delay, the remainder of the
voyage, under the speeding influence of favoura-
ble winds, proved rapid and fortunate. In less
than the usual period assigned to the passage,
they discovered Schonhoven and the Island of
Goree ; then the mouth of the Maas, which
river they shortly entered ; and coasting along
its low slimy shore fringed with osiers, inter-
spersed here and there with a stunted polled
willow, they passed Maaslandsleys. From this
point the banks began to assume a more pic-
turesque aspect, being lined with farm-houses,
villages, and handsome avenues of trees, en-

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 239

livened by moving groups of people, and herds
of cattle that seemed to rival their owners in
sleekness and solidity of appearance. The gates
of the city being shut and the boom closed,
when they reached Rotterdam, Jocelyn was fain
to remain on board another night ; a penance
which he endured with the less patience as it
was entirely attributable to the obstinacy of the
captain, who persisted in sending a boat ashore
to buy a pound of tobacco at a particular shop,
although warned by the pilot that it would oc-
casion his being shut out for the night.

At an early hour on the following morning
our hero landed, and, entering the city by the
old gate, was struck with the numerous canals,
covered with drawbridges, and lined with ves-
sels of all sorts, whose lofty masts, surmounted
with gallant flags and streamers floating on the
wind, imparted an animation and gaiety even to
the air above ; while the beautiful streets below,
the stately avenues of trees, the houses faced
with shining tiles, their stories projecting above

240 BEAMBLETYE HOUSE.

each other in gaily painted balconies, and their
large windows glittering in the rising sun, gave to
the whole scene a lively and exhilarating effect,
which was heightened by the activity and bustle
of the thronging population. As if to render
his reception still more cheerful and flattering,
a celebrated Carillorieur from Leyden was skil-
fully playing a favourite air upon the chimes of
the church of St Laurence, whose merry echoes
appeared to awaken a correspondent feeling,
even in the phlegmatic natives of Rotterdam.

In the broad and magnificent street called
the Boompies, planted with a noble mall, and
commanding delightful views of the opposite
country, stood the house of Mijn Heer Adrian
Beverning, one of the burgomasters of the city,
and the merchant to whom his letter of intro-
duction was addressed. The mansion, partly
built in the old Spanish stile with the gable ends
embattled in front, and enlarged by subsequent
additions in the Dutch taste, formed a huge un-
wieldy pile of massy construction, flanked round

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

with a little suburb of counting-houses and of-
fices at the bottom ; and terminated at top by a
range of warehouses for light goods, to whose
walls cranes were affixed. The intermediate
stories, fronted by projecting balconies hand-
somely decorated, and embellished with beauti-
ful shrubs and flowers, seemed to be appropriat-
ed to the residence of the family. Ringing at
the principal entrance, Jocelyn was surprised to
find himself ushered into a spacious marble hall,
whence a broad flight of steps of the same ma-
terial, adorned with gilt balustrades, conducted
to the upper apartments. Early as was the
hour, Mr. Beverning, he was informed, was not
only up, but employed in superintending the
landing of some goods, though he would doubt-
less see Jocelyn immediately if he sent in his
letter of introduction. This was accordingly
done, and in a few minutes afterwards he was
ushered up-stairs.

The apartment which he now entered was
hung round with cabinet pictures of the Flemish

VOL. II. M

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

and Dutch schools, and opened by a folding
window upon the flat-leaded roofs of the count-
ing-houses. At this aperture, in an arm-chair
of embroidered velvet, with a small desk and
papers before him, sate the Burgomaster, a port-
ly, not to say a somewhat burly-looking, per-
sonage, attired in a green cap edged with lace, a
flowered damask morning-gown lined with green
silk, a tabbinet waistcoat, trunk-hose, and green
velvet slippers. His commanding height, his
large and rather corpulent figure, his peaked
grizzled beard, a certain appearance of richness
in his costume, and the sparkling of a magni-
ficent diamond-ring, which he wore upon the
little finger of either hand, imparted a degree
of grandeur and superiority to his look, which
Jocelyn had little expected to contemplate ;
and which in his estimation did but ill assort
with the pipe in -his mouth> (although it was a
richly embossed meerschaum,) the silver spitting-
dish at his feet, and the burning turf in a little
porcelain vase, which was to relume that pipe in

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

case it should be extinguished. Stately, how-
ever, as was his appearance, the expression of his
countenance was good humoured, and his man-
ner frank, even to familiarity. " Aha! Sir,"
he exclaimed, speaking to Jocelyn in perfect
good English—" this is what I like in a young
man — smorgens vroeg, as the Dutch proverb
goes, — to rise early is to double life. You see
I have not opened your letter of introduction ;
the hand-writing and seal of my excellent and
wealthy friend Alderman Staunton will ever be
a sure passport to Adrian Beverning. I was
clerk to his father upon London Bridge as early

as the year but what signifies the date ?

You may see that time has taken me by the
beard, a touch that turns everything to grey,
to show us that the evening of life is coming on.
You would have been welcome, Sir, without
the Alderman's autograph, if there be truth in
Seneca's averment, that personal comeliness is
a letter of recommendation. Even merit is
enhanced by it : Petronius Arbiter was right.
M £

244

B II AMULET YE HOUSE.

'.Gratiorest pulchro veniens e corpore virtus/
You see, Sir, I am giving you credit before-
hand, for when I look at you I can never be-
lieve you will justify the exclamation applied to
Ovid's larva — ' O quale caput, at cerebrum non
habet.'"

Just as he had finished this somewhat unne-
cessary and pedantic display of his classical
lore, Jocelyn observed that the window was
darkened by a bale which was being craned up
to the warehouse above, at sight of which the
Burgomaster, putting his head to the window,
bawled out — " Double S in a diamond. No.
278,— what is the weight !" A voice from below
gave the necessary information, which the mer-
chant entered in a book before him, and then
turning to Jocelyn, inquired, " Are not those
delightful nutmegs ?"

" Really, Sir, I cannot say," he replied, " as
1 never tasted them."

" Tasted them !" exclaimed the Burgomaster,
with an expression of some contempt ; " cannot

BEAMBLETYE HOUSE. 245

you judge by the smell ? They are just arrived
from Amboyna."

Our hero declared that the odour was deli-
cious, and indeed the whole house was perfumed
with the fragrance of spices, over which not
even the smoke of its master's pipe could pre-
dominate.

" Did you see my noble vessel in the river ?"
continued the merchant, "de Vrouw Roosje;
the Lady Rose, the richest ship that ever en-
tered Rotterdam. These bales are just brought
up from her in lighters, for she is yet too deep
in the water to come into the harbour. And
yet she has nothing in her but spices. Aha !
young man, think of that !" He evidently
thought a good deal of it himself, for his whole
figure expanded with delight as he took the
pipe from his mouth for a moment, inflated his
capacious cheeks till they resembled those of
Boreas, and deliberately puffed out the smoke
with another interjection of — " Aha i young
man, think of that !"

246 BEAMBLETYE HOUSE.

One of the fragrant bales was again passing
the window, when, instead of contemplating it
with the same complacency as the former, his
countenance was marked with anger as he called
out in a loud voice — " Peterkin Voorst ! Peter-
kin Voorst r

" Ja, mijn heer, ja," replied some one from
below.

" Who is in the lighter repairing the bales ?"

" Wouter Vanwangen," was the reply.
" Dismiss him instantly," cried the wrathful
Burgomaster ; " he has left a hole in the last
bale, and three of the nutmegs have already
fallen out. Stop yonder varlet of a boy, he
has picked up one of them. Bonder ende
blixem ! are we to be ruined by such careless
knaves ?"

As if not to notice this act of meanness in so
important a character as the richest Burgo-
master of Rotterdam, Jocelyn had fixed his
eyes upon one of the pictures in the apartment.

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 247

which his host observing, exclaimed, " Aha !
that is a curious picture; it was painted by
Rembrandt, while yet a younker in his father's
mill, which only admitting the light from above,
imparted to his pencil that peculiar depth of
light and shade from which he never afterwards
deviated. Next to it is the portrait of his maid-
servant, which he placed in the window of his
house, and for several days deceived the good
folks of Amsterdam, who mistook it for a real
figure. I gave two hundred double ducats for
the pair. But if you are an admirer of these
things, look at yonder gem, the shrimp-man, by
Frans Mieris. It cost me fifteen hundred
florins. Aha ! think of that !" — It was indeed
an exquisite specimen of the master, and the
whole collection seemed to have been made with
a taste and an indifference to expense, that
formed a startling inconsistency in one who
piqued himself upon judging of nutmegs by the
smell, and was too sordid to lose a single one

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

of those little aromatic balls, without at the
same time losing his temper and crying out
that he should be ruined.

" You have not examined this sea-fight by
Gillem Vandervelde," continued the Burgo-
master, pointing to a picture over the fire-place :
" he went out to sea in a light skiff during the
last engagement of our fleet, in order to take
his sketch, and ventured into the midst —
(Hallo ! Jan Oost ' Jan Oost ! put some grease
fo that creaking crane. Bonder ende blixem !
we cannot hear ourselves talk :) — and ventured
into the midst of the bullets ; but the rogue made
me pay for it. Eighteen hundred rix-dollars.
Money, Sir, money ; but yet the man must be
a fool that would venture his life for it. Half-
mad, however, is sometimes double wise. What
says Seneca ? Nullum Jit magnum ingenium
sine mixturd dementia. Peterkin Voorst ! what
is the weight of No. 280 ?"

As Jocelyn still continued gazing on the sea-
piece, his host continued, " Aha ! Sir ; since

BEAMBLETYE HOUSE. 249

you are fond of ships I have a rare treat for
you. You shall accompany me in my cutter
on board the Vrouw Roosje. Such a beauty !
Round as a barge, at both bows and stern;
and deep, deep, deep to hold the nutmegs and
cinnamon, and spices from Amboyna. Aha !
young man ; think of that. And here, too, we
have some pretty little pictures of Nature's
painting. Follow me, follow me."

So saying, he passed his portly figure with
some difficulty through the folding window, and
Jocelyn following him out upon the leads of
the counting-house, found them encircled by
low stands, on which were leaden vases of the
rarest and most expensive tulips, whose names
were inscribed upon the front in gilt letters.

" Aha ! the poor Grand Duke is dead/' cried
the Burgomaster, pointing to one of the flowers
that had perished. " I gave six hundred and
twenty dollars for the root; but bulbs are
mortal as well as men : he had been ailing some
time. This, however, is my pride, the yellow
M 5

250 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

Sultan ; I dare not tell you how much it cost
me ; a fortune — a fortune ; — unless, indeed, this
streaked emperor, or this queen of Hungary
may contest the palm with it in beauty, as they
did in price. Is it not a paragon ? straight as
Circe's wand, and fair as Rhodope among the
virgins. I know not which to admire the most,
nor how to satisfy myself with gazing upon
either. I am like Tantalus — inter undas siti-
culosus."

The floral enthusiast was becoming quite
poetical under the inspiration of his vegetable
beauties, when he espied a little caterpillar upon
one of the leaves of the " Queen of Hungary,1*
an apparition that filled him with unutterable
horror.

" Genadigste God !" he ejaculated with a look
of dismay, as falling on his knees and placing
the bowl of his pipe under the obnoxious insect,
he fumigated it until it rolled lifeless into a
piece of paper which he extended to receive it.

BBAMBLETYE HOUSE. 251

" Karl Vanhoven !" he exclaimed, in a loud
and angry voice — " send me Karl Vanhoven."

In a few minutes the unfortunate gardener
made his appearance, when his master, deeming
words inadequate to the enormity of his guilt,
pointed to the defunct reptile, a silent and
pathetic reproach, which soon overspread the
countenance of the offender with a blush of
consternation.

" Miss Beverning is managing the Queen of
Hungary herself," said the accused wight, " and
desired me never to touch it."

Though this was probably an off-hand false-
hood, ventured in the fellow's belief that his
kind-hearted mistress would take the blame
upon her own shoulders, it instantly appeased
the wrathful Burgomaster, who exclaimed: —

u Nay, if Constantia will rear her own
flowers, she shall treat them as she lists, e'en
should she kill me half a dozen dynasties of
kings, queens, and emperors. Poor girl ! since

252

BRAMBLETYE HOUSR.

her mother's death she has few pleasures, and I
were a churl indeed, to deny her anything that
wealth can procure. Get thee gone, Karl : here
is something to buy a bottle of schiedam for
the Huisvrouw ; but forget not my Noordwyk
roses in the blue balcony* nor my Haerlaem
jonquils."

" Every leaf has been twice brushed this
morning," said the bowing gardener as he
quitted his master's presence with a re-assured
countenance.

" The crane has stopped working,1' cried the
Burgomaster to Jocelyn : — "the wharf men are
gone to their breakfast ; and if you can drink
Mocha coffee of my own importation, to the
tune of ' De Witt's Dream,' which this per-
severing carilloneur has been pealing on St.
Lawrence' chimes ever since six this morning ;
or sip some chocolate-cream which my daughter
mixes for me with her own hand, we will e'en
seek the painted parlour, and see whether the
jade have yet made her appearance."

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 253

Jocelyn having bowed acquiescence to this
proposition, his host led the way to an apart-
ment, whose pannels and ceiling were decorated
by the pencil of Rubens and Jansen Mirevelt
with figures and landscapes, that seemed to
unite the rich colouring of the Venetian with
the elaborate detail of the Flemish school. On
the table was a breakfast service of massy silver ;
but the nymph who was to do the honours of
the repast, had not yet taken her station.

66 Aha ! Miss Constantia !" exclaimed her
father. " You must not read Celanire, ou la
Promenade de Versailles* so late o1 nights, if it
renders you such a sluggard in the morning."
Taking out a watch encircled with rare diamonds,
he continued : — " Nay, it is not so late ; these
rogues have put the wharf-clock too forward :
they are paid by the hour, and see how they
cheat me ! We shall have time to visit my
museum."

* One of Madame de Scuderi's romances, which
were at that moment in high vogue.

254 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

At these words he led his guest to a large
upper room, hung round with baubles, curio-
sities, foreign arms, dresses, and instruments of
music, most of which his own captains had pro-
cured in their traffic with the islanders of the
Indian Ocean. On a table, in the centre, were
divers quaint contrivances of clockwork, and
other pieces of mechanism of Dutch manufac-
ture, such as waterworks in miniature that per-
formed all the operations of larger machinery,
artificial music, an automaton, a tumbler, and a
farm-yard, whose various tenants, both birds
and beasts, enacted a most discordant imitation
of the voices of the originals.

" I have complied with the fashion," said the
Burgomaster, " in setting aside a room for all
this trumpery, and dignifying it with the name
of a museum. The folks of Rotterdam are
mad for these conceits and toys, and it is wise,
as the monkish adage runs, ' sinere insanum
mundum vadere quo vult; nam vult vadere quo
vult.' — For myself, I hold them but as poor and

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 255

puerile; and if your taste jump with mine, you
would rather possess one relic of my gallery
below, than all these barbarous trophies and
elaborate playthings. But you shall judge for
yourself, if you will follow me."

Willingly accepting this invitation, Jocelyn
accompanied his host into a long gallery at the
back of the house, supported by Doric columns,
and filled with statues, marbles, and antiques,
of the greatest rarity and beauty. Some of the
former, in particular, were of the most exquisite
proportions ; and as he gazed upon them with
fervent delight, his admiration of the Burgo-
master's character was enhanced when he in-
formed him, that he had at that moment two
agents in the Greek Islands expressly employed
to discover and purchase marbles for his col-
lection. In the course of conversation he also
learned, that he united the diplomatic avocations
with those of the merchant and the virtuoso,
having been once despatched to Paris by their
High Mightinesses on a secret mission ; and

256 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

twice on a similar errand to the late Protector of
England. When he combined his little scraps
of Latin, his attention to the paltriest details of
business and his sordid fear of losing a single
nutmeg, with his utter indifference to expense in
his magnificent establishment, his love of the
arts, and his presumed diplomatic talents, he
was at a loss to determine in what class to place
him, whether among the plodding and thrifty
burghers of Rotterdam, or with such enlightened
and princely merchants as the De Medici of
Florence.

" Let us begone," said the Burgomaster —
" breakfast must have been long since ready,
and we shall in our turn be keeping Constantia
waiting." — Jocelyn tore himself away the more
reluctantly from the contemplation of a Venus
Callipyges, which had just engaged his attention,
because he had from the first, by some unac-
countable association, anticipated a resemblance
between the Burgomaster's daughter and his
Dutch step-mother. He was prepared, by all

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. £57

the Dutch women he had hitherto seen, for volu-
minous protruding hips, thick legs, a sodden
sandy face, and that sort of form and physio-
gnomy, which might in some degree remind
him of Sir John's admission as to Lady Comp-
ton, that she had become " a trifle fishy in the
face, and a thought sowish in the figure."

" Ah ! I thought so/' he exclaimed as he
entered the apartment, and saw a female seated
at the table, whose prim and formal figure,
white eye-lashes, grey eyes, and old-maidish ap-
pearance, were far from prepossessing, although
they would not by any means have authorized
Sir John's ungallant and disparaging phrases.
She saluted Jocelyn with a coldness of manner
and forbidding aspect that seemed calculated to
repel any attempt at intimacy, even had he been
disposed to make it ; but as he saw at once that
all his unfavourable presentiments were con-
firmed, so far at least as could be judged from
her demeanour, he determined to address him-
self to the Burgomaster, and leave his sour-

258 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

looking daughter to her own meditations. The
lapse of a few seconds, however, served to un-
deceive him as to the notions he had so hastily
and erroneously formed. " Aha! Miss Van-
spaacken," cried the Burgomaster, " I have just
been saying that Constantia must not read Cela-
nire over-night, if I am to expect my chocolate-
cream in the morning. Though she is now too
old to be deemed any longer your pupil, you
should read her a lecture on the subject. As
for me, though I can scold upon occasion with
any churl that growls in Rotterdam, I could
not twit the baggage, no not for the value of
the Vrouw Roosje's cargo, though she contains
nothing but spices : Aha ! Joffer Vanspaacken,
think of that." — " Miss Beverning has been up
and waiting some time for her breakfast," replied
the person thus addressed, pursing up her mouth
and bending stiffly to the Burgomaster— ^" but
as you did not appear, she has gone to look at
her flowers, whence she will doubtless return
in two or three minutes." — Jocelyn smiled at

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

259

the idea of his having mistaken the governess,
or rather the duenna, for the damsel ; though
he still thought that nothing very prepossessing
could be expected in the pupil, when he con-
templated the starch and pragmatical insti-
tutrice.

In the midst of these lucubrations the door
opened, and he almost started from his seat at
the apparition of the two large and lustrous
black eyes he had seen at the Tournament in
Paris, and which had too deeply impressed
his memory to permit any mistake as to their
identity. Nor was the recognition less instan-
taneous and electric on the part of the lady, who
stopped short, blushed deeply, drew down the
blue-veined lids over her large orbs, and seemed
unable for a few seconds to recover from her
confusion and surprise ; white Miss Vanspaacken
perked herself up with a keen suspicious looka
and the astonished Burgomaster, taking the pipe
from his lips, and letting the smoke escape as it
liked from his open mouth, exclaimed, " Hey,

260

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

Slapperloot? wat is er in de weg? what's the
matter?" — These were the only sounds that
were uttered for a short interval, at the expira-
tion of which, Jocelyn, having in some degree
recovered his self-possession, explained to his
host, that if he were not mistaken, he had had
the pleasure of seeing Miss Beverning at the
royal Tournament, in Paris.

" And did you recollect her so immediately ?"
inquired the Burgomaster. " I was there with
her, but you did not seem to remember me when
we first encountered." There might have been
more reasons for this difference than entered into
the speaker's immediate contemplation, though
he still seemed to be at a loss to account for their
mutual surprise and agitation, when Constantia,
who had now become more collected, exclaimed,
" This is the gentleman that unhorsed the Bohe-
mian Baron in the lists, and who picked up my
scarf, when, by mere accident, owing to my
leaning too forward, it slipped from my shoul-
ders."

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 261

As Jocelyn noticed the alacrity with which
she seized the first opportunity of exculpating
herself from any intentional bestowal of that fa-
vour, he thought it right to acquit himself also
of any vain misconstructions he might have been
supposed to put upon the occurrence, by declar-
ing that he had made every inquiry for the pur-
pose of restoring it, but without success. "Aha!"
cried the Burgomaster, " were you the young
Cavaliero who bore off the Baron's casque like
a pennon to your lance ? Donder en' blixem !
you gave him a rough greeting and a sore fall.
What was the value of the sword the King
gave you ?"

Jocelyn declared that he had never thought
of estimating it, as he only prized the honour,
without adverting to the intrinsic value. " But
the honour is sometimes more gratifying," repli-
ed the merchant, " when we know that it is con-
vertible into some certain hundreds of ducats. I
need not, then, as it seems, introduce you and
my daughter to one another ; nor could I if I

BEAMBLETYE HOUSE.

would, for though we have been chatting to-
gether so long, I never thought to inquire your
name. It is time I should examine your creden-
tials, and break the seal of my good friend's let-
ter. I am told he is worth a hundred thousand
double ducats. Aha ! think of that, young
man !v

With these words he took the paper from his
waistcoat-pocket, and while he was engaged in
perusing its contents, our hero had an opportu-
nity of contemplating his daughter, who had de-
rived from her sire nothing but her height and
her commanding figure. From her mother, a
Frenchwoman of a distinguished Norman family,
whom he had married in his first embassy to
Paris, she inherited that cast of countenance,
which, in this country, we should pronounce to
be emphatically foreign, although some might
rather say, that it gave her the appearance of a
most beautiful Jewess. Her black eyes, which,
as we have already noticed, were large ^ round
and lustrous, were surmounted by dark, though

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 263

delicately arched-brows; her nose inclined to
the aquiline, and her mouth might have been
pronounced too large, but that it disclosed, when
opened, a set of teeth that were absolutely fault-
less. Her clear brown complexion harmonized
admirably -with the profuse raven locks, which,
parting upon her high forehead, fell in glossy curls
down to her neck; while the general beauty of her
features received an inexpressible charm from an
interesting air of pensiveness, which, however,
seemed to emanate from modesty and depth of
feeling, rather than from melancholy.

From this survey, which, although it has oc-
cupied some time in the description, was com-
prehended by our hero in a single delighted
glance ; he was recalled by the Burgomaster's
exclamation of " Bonder ende blixem !" and on
Jocelyn's casting his eyes upon the apostrophiser,
he clearly saw that the contents of the letter had
not only surprised him, but disturbed the equa-
nimity of his temper. " Wat de deivel !" he
continued, turning to Jocelyn, as he folded up

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

the paper ; " does not the Alderman know my
connexion with the English Government, that he
asks me thus a second time to harbour runaways
from the royal frown ? Am I not in jeopardy

enough already about that unfortunate ?

Does he think Charles the Second will be played
with, as if he were de Koning of Heer, a king of
cards ? An angry monarch has keen eyes, and
quick ears, and long hands, and sharp nails.
Aha ! young man ! think of that. In den
naame Godes ! how came you to take a man by
the beard that wears a crown upon his head ?"

Our hero concisely related the cause of his in-
temperate expressions, and the unfortunate issue
of the contest they had occasioned with Bagot,
concluding by stating, that he still possessed the
favour and good offices of the Queen, whose por-
trait he produced, in corroboration of his asser-
tion. " Aha!" cried the Burgomaster, who,
from the ambiguous terms of the letter, feared
that his offence was of a more treasonable
nature — " is that all ? then we may snap our

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE, 265

fingers, provided we make no noise in doing it.
We will take care of you, young man : but you
must be quiet and discreet ; neither so ready of
hand, nor so free of tongue ; for though Adrian
Beverning be a Burgomaster of Rotterdam, and
I believe. none of the poorest— aha ! yet is he
surrounded by spies of the Orange party, who,
in these times of trouble and faction, might,
upon the slightest pretext, or even upon none at
all, expose him to the perilous suspicion of the
Hooghen Mooghens. Een woord voor de wyzen.
A word to the wise, young man, is enough ; so
taste the mocha ere it be cold; and if Constan-
tia will spare you some of the chocolate-cream, in
return for your taking care of her scarf, I can
recommend it as being specially balsamic as well
as grateful."

A second blush deeply suffused his daughter's
face as she obeyed this intimation ; and the
founder of the repast now setting the example of
more active measures by a vigorous assault upon
the dried fish and smoked meats, Jocelyn, who

VOL. II. N

266 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

had an accumulated appetite of three or four days
to allay, since he had found little that was edible
on board the galliot, did justice to the hospitality
of his host. What Miss Vanspaacken wanted
in activity, she supplied by perseverance ; for
though the formal way in which she executed
every manoeuvre of the knife and fork, and the
mathematical precision with which each piece of
meat was cut, occasioned her progress to be slow,
the process went on with the steadiness of ma-
chinery, and the work accomplished was propor-
tionately considerable. Constantia was the only
one that seemed indifferent to the good cheer.
Sitting silent and abstracted, she was apparently
too much occupied in feeding her thoughts, to
attend to the refection of the body, until her
father exclaimed, " Aha, Constantia ! has the
sight of this doughty champion robbed you of
your appetite ? feed, child, feed !" when, with
renewed blushes, she endeavoured to obey the
in j unction.

Just as the repast was concluded, the Bur-

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

257

gomaster started up at the sound of a bell, ex-
claiming, "Hey, Slapperloot ! there is the wharf-
bell. I must see the remainder of the nutmegs
landed ; but, at twelve o'clock, Signor Cava-
liero, we shall have emptied the barge, and I
shall be ready to give you your promised treat,
by showing you De Vrouw Roosje. Meantime,
Joffer Vanspaacken, will you order an apartment
to be prepared for the Queen's champion ? and
you, Constantia, must manage to entertain him
till I return. She is still too deep in the water
to enter the canal ; and all spices! — Aha ! young
man, think of that !" The conclusion of his
speech was an unconscious soliloquy, uttered as
he was leaving the room, and while his thoughts
were on board De Vrouw Roosje.

In a short while, Constantia, discarding her
embarrassment, commenced a more unrestrained
conversation with our hero, who was astonished
at her proficiency in English, until he learned
that she had not only accompanied her father in
his embassies to London, but that it formed the

268 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

more prevalent language at their table, where
some of his own countrymen were almost daily
visitants. " In my poor mother's time," she con-
tinued, " we always conversed in French ; so
that I am perhaps as well acquainted with these
two languages as with my native Dutch."

" Better !" ejaculated Miss Vansjpaacken,
opening for the first time her thin compressed
lips, "for you never give our gutturals their full
beauty, nor do you impart the classical breadth
to our double a's. Even my own name is ren-
dered less harmonious by your manner of pro-
nouncing it :" — and she then uttered it herself,
giving such a specimen of the true Dutch har-
mony, as wonderfully resembled the quacking
of a duck ; which, after all, may have been the
original and genuine dialect of her amphibious
countrymen.

Requesting another sight of the Queen of
England's picture, Constantia drew from Joce-
lyn a more detailed account of the occurrence
at Hampton Court, and of the rencounter with

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 269

Bagot, than he had furnished to the Burgo-
master ; fixing her large eyes upon him as he
spoke, and devouring every syllable of his nar-
rative, with an appearance of intense interest.
As he concluded his statement, he declared that
he viewed his exile, and the loss of his appoint-
ment, with diminished regret, since it had been
the happy means of bringing him acquainted
with Miss Beverning, whose beautiful eyes had
never been absent from his memory since he
had first beheld them in the tilting-ground of
the Parisian tournament. At this avowal,
Constantia again became embarrassed ; Miss
Vanspaacken assumed a most forbidding and
duenna-like demureness of look ; and Jocelyn,
in order to relieve them both, took down a
guitar which was hanging against the wall,
and, observing that it was differently construct-
ed from his own, handed it to Constantia, re-
questing she would enable him to judge of its
powers, if he might venture to solicit such a
favour upon so short an acquaintance. With-

270 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

out the least hesitation she began tuning the
instrument ; and, wishing to compliment her
visitant with a song in his own language, she
warbled in a low, mellow, but withal a some-
what melancholy tone of voice, the following
song, — which had been recently set to music
by Purcel : —

SONG.

I.

MY dear mistress has a heart

Soft as those kind looks she gave me,

When with love's resistless art,
And her eyes, she did inflame me.

II.

But her constancy 's so weak,

She 's so wild and apt to wander,
That my jealous heart would break,

Should we live one day asunder.

III.

Angels listen when she speaks;

She 's my delight, all mankind's wonder;
But my jealous heart would break,

Should we live one day asunder.

" The music is by Henry Purcel," said

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 271

Constantia, " but I know not the author of the
words."

Our hero informed her that they were by
his friend the Earl of Rochester ; and after
paying her the compliments she so justly me-
rited, both from her style of singing and her
command of the instrument, he mentioned the
mad exploit in which his lordship had so lately
rendered himself conspicuous, and for which
he was at that moment doing penance in the
Tower; explaining the manner in which he
had been implicated in that outrage, and the
atonement he had made, as soon as he had dis-
covered its nature, by procuring the restora-
tion of Mistress Mallett to her friends. To
this narrative his fair auditor listened with an
attention that seemed to absorb every faculty
of her soul. She remained silent at its con-
clusion, as if anxious that he should still con-
tinue to speak ; but suddenly recollecting her-
self, and starting from her reverie, she handed
the guitar to Jocelyn, exclaiming, " You talk-

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

ed of its being different from your own, and'
cannot therefore deny that you are a performer.
By the custom of minstrelsy, I have a claim
upon you for a song."

u It shall be willingly acknowledged, espe-
cially to so fair and accomplished a claimant,1'
cried Jocelyn ; " but I am not one of those
adroit workmen that are indifferent about their
tools. These wire and brass strings, to which
I have been unaccustomed, would make but
jangling music, when touched by an unpractised
hand. If my effects, which I ordered to be
conveyed hither, have arrived, I will cheerfully
attempt a ballad upon my own guitar.'1

Miss Vanspaacken volunteering her services
to show him the apartment, to which the ser-
vants had received orders to convey his luggage,
he accompanied her up-stairs to a room opening
into a balcony, filled with rare exotics and the
most beautiful shrubs. Every balcony, she in-
formed him, was supplied with choice plants,
the captains being instructed to bring home all

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 273

the botanical curiosities that could be collected
in the countries they visited ; and every floor
had a small green-house warmed by a flue, into
which the tenderer plants were removed when
the season required it. Among his other effects
he soon found his guitar, with which he returned
to the breakfast-parlour, attended by Miss
Vanspaacken, who watched him with all the
jealousy of a genuine duenna. His instrument
was presently put in order, and he accidentally
selected for his coup d'essai one of those simple
Norman ballads which he had picked up in
Paris, and which happened to have been an old
favourite with Constantia's mother, who had
often sung it to her when a child. France was
the country of her affections, not simply because
it was her mother's birth-place, but from the
memory of the pleasant hours she had passed
there in former times, and the cherished friends
and relations she had left in it. She doated
upon the very language ; and when she heard
the sweet and manly voice of Jocelyn giving its
N 5

BEAMBLETYE HOUSE.

full expression to the plaintive ballad to which
she had so often listened when sitting upon the
knee of her departed mother, it awakened a
train of tender recollections that quickly over-
came her feelings. As she gazed upon the sin-
ger the big tears started from her eyes, and
rolled unrestrainedly down her cheeks, till
Jocelyn was himself deeply affected at the sight
of her emotion; and Miss Vanspaacken re-
proved her tartly, declaring that it was ex-
tremely ungenteel to give way to one's feelings
at any time, and particularly indecorous in the
presence of a stranger.

Hoping to restore the tone of her feelings,
which he perceived to be acutely sensitive,
Jocelyn changed the strain to one of those brisk
and lively chansonettes, of which France sup-
plies such a sparkling and abundant variety ;
but it seemed to touch upon no sympathising
chord in the heart of Constantia. She had re-
covered her firmness, but. was not to be exhi-
larated so easily as she had been melted :

BRAMBLETYE HOtSE.

though she was no longer sad, she appeared to
have little relish for gaiety. He accordingly
laid aside his instrument ; and entering into
conversation with her, found that she discoursed
with intelligence upon all subjects, and with the
eloquence of a deep and earnest enthusiasm
upon those which more immediately interested
her feelings. So pleasantly was he absorbed in
this colloquy, that he was not less surprised
than annoyed when the Burgomaster entered,
with his watch in his hand, exclaiming, " Aha !
Signor Cavaliero, twelve o'clock, and not ready ?
You will learn to be punctual when you have
been with us a little longer. Four hundred
and thirteen bales of Amboyna nutmegs ; think
of that ! I know you would be disappointed if
I did not give you the promised treat by show-
ing you my beauty, De Vrouw Roosje; so, come
along, for the boatmen are waiting.1'

Though Jocelyn most devoutly wished the
Vrouw Roosje at the bottom of the Zuyder-zee,
preferring the beauty he was with to all the

£76 BRAMBLKTYE HOUSE.

wooden charmers that ever floated, he could not
venture to offend his host, but reluctantly ac-
companied him to the water-side ; filled with
admiration of his lovely daughter, and leaving
Constantia not less vividly impressed by the
character and accomplishments of her father's
new guest. Her mother, who had lost two
brothers in the religious civil wars which for
so many years desolated France, was of a pen-
sive character, and a strict Catholic, which reli-
gion, as well as her sedateness, had descended
to her daughter; but though Constantia was
calm and serious, and had hitherto seen nothing
that had in the smallest degree touched her
heart, she by no means deserved the imputation
of indifference and coldness with which she was
sometimes charged. On the contrary, she was
deeply susceptible ; her apparent want of feeling
being nothing but a want of sympathy with the
society among which she moved. It might be
truly said of her that her desires " were dol-
phin-like, and showed themselves above the

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 277

element she lived in." Never was a young
female more strikingly misplaced. An enthu-
siast both in religion and virtue, lofty and per-
haps even romantic in her notions, she was
exposed to the sordid solicitations of Dutch
brokers, ship-owners, manufacturers of madder,
and vulgar wooers of all sorts, who, courting
her fortune while they were indifferent to her
charms, floundered about her like so many por-
puses around a flying-fish.

From such a revolting reality she took refuge
in the dreams of imagination, devouring the
romances of the Scuderis and others, which then
inundated France, with an avidity that increased
her distaste for the sphere she occupied, by
filling her with notions of a more exalted and
chivalrous state of existence. The fancies thus
imbibed, and the aspirations thus cherished,
might be visionary and fantastic ; but her delu-
sion was not the craziness of a female Quixote,
nor the romance of a precocious school-girl. It
was a high and holy enthusiasm, which while it

278 BEAMBLETYE HOUSE.

fixed her thoughts upon a model of perfection
that was perhaps unattainable, at least stimulated
her to every thing that was virtuous and noble.
At the perusal of any great and magnanimous
action in the books on which she doted, her heart
leaped, and the blood rushed thrilling through
her whole frame. If she encountered any thing
of an opposite tendency, her large eyes kindled ;
while a fiery look attested the fierceness of her
scorn and indignation.

Will it be deemed wonderful that such a
young enthusiast as we have been describing,
accustomed hitherto to no other society than
that of the mercantile boors of Rotterdam, or
the plodding foreigners who drove their bar-
gains over her father's wine, should instantly see
realised in Jocelyn the bright creation of her
fancy, the very being for whom her soul had
secretly panted, and yield herself to the delu-
sion with all the fervour of an ardent tempe-
rament? His personal recommendations, his
prowess, his musical talents, would not alone

BltAMBLETYE HOUSE. 279

have thus inflamed her imagination ; though
these, it must be confessed, form a combination
not easily resisted. When the same hand, that
has wielded with* distinction the lance and the
sword, can tastefully touch the guitar ; when the
voice, that has cheered the war-horse in the field,
can warble a soft love-ditty in a lady's bower, the
ordinary avenues to a female heart are already
gained. These united qualifications Constantia
had seen in Jocelyn, and had been contented to
admire them ; but that which she had felt in
her inmost soul, that which had awakened the
dormant affections of h er heart, was the knightly
and chivalrous impulse which prompted him to
punish the ungenerous Bohemian baron, to
vindicate the insulted Queen of England, to
succour and liberate the fair victim of Lord
Rochester's violence. She looked upon him as
her sex"*s champion ; and seeing him ruined and
exiled for those very actions, which would have
raised him to the pinnacle of glory in the pages

280 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

of Clelie, Ibrahim, or the Grand Cyrus, she
considered him abundantly entitled to her ad-
miration and pity ; little reflecting, or perhaps
not knowing, that those feelings are but the in-
sidious disguises under which Love masks his
advances.

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 281

CHAPTER VII.

'* Your mind is tossing on the ocean,
There where our Argosies with portly sail,
Like signiors and rich burghers, on the flood,
Or, as it were, the pageants of the sea,
Do overpeer the petty traffickers,
That curtsey to them, do them reverence,
As they fly by them with their woven wings."

SHAKSTEARE.

As Jocelyn entered the hall with the Burgo-
master, for the purpose of visiting the spice-
ship, he found several servants waiting in rich
liveries, one of whom threw over his master's
shoulders a superb Palatine cloak, which fas-
tened across the chest with a broad golden
agraffe enchased with jewels. As he gazed
upon his companion's wide-flapped hat, looped
up on one side with a button of black bugles,
on his peaked and grizzled beard, his old-

282 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

fashioned basket-hilted sword, whose handle
glittered as it now and then escaped from be-
neath his cloak, and the commanding height and
portliness of his figure, he might almost have
fancied that he beheld some haughty Spanish
grandee of the olden time, had not his ideas
been instantly recalled to Holland by the meers-
chaum pipe, from which the worthy Burgo-
master seldom parted. When he remembered
that this grandeur of appearance was combined
with a reputation for immense riches, he was no
longer amazed at the reverence, almost amount-
ing to awe, which his presence seemed to in-
spire ; nor at the profound obeisances with which
he was every where greeted as he moved along.
Their progress to the water-side was impeded
by a little bustle among the men, owing to
their having seized a caitiff in the act of filling
his coat-pockets from a sugar-hogshead.

*' Who had the watching and repairing of
those casks ?" inquired the Burgomaster, when
he learned the cause of the disturbance.

BHAMBLETYE HOUSE. 283

44 Wont von Goocht," replied two or three
voices.

44 Hand me the wharf-book," continued the
merchant.

He took it ; and running the pen through the
offender's name, said: — 44 Give him his wages
and dismiss him. My people are well paid,
and they shall do their duty. Besides, he who
leaves the door open makes the thief."

" Mercy ! mijn heer, for the love of God !"
cried the sugar stealer, whom they were rudely
hauling away. " As you are rich and great,
and powerful, have compassion ! Be not hard
as Dives, because I am poor as Lazarus."

" Lazarus was no thief, sirrah," replied the
merchant sternly. u Had you asked charity of
me or my daughter, it would not have been
refused, if found to be merited. Away with
him to the Rasp House ! — I have no objection,"
he continued, taking Jocelyn's arm and leading
him forward, 44 to throw away a thousand ducats
upon a toy, a trifle, a nothing; but I will

284 BRAMBLETYE HOUSB.

not be robbed ; no, not of the tenth part of a
stiver."

By this time they had reached the water-
side, where a six-oared cutter was in attendance ;
the boatmen handsomely dressed in the Burgo-
master's livery, and the whole vessel as scrupu-
lously clean, and even elegant in its appoint-
ments, as if they were entering a drawing-room.
The spectators, who had collected to see them
embark, stood respectfully with their hats in
their hands, exhibiting that homage to superior
wealth, which is no where more universally felt
than in Holland. The sail was hoisted, the
wind was fair, the boatmen plied their oars,
and in an unusually short time, although it
appeared dismally long to Jocelyn, they ap-
proached the spot where De Vrouw Roosje lay,
like a great unwieldly log on the water; her
bows and stern rising considerably above the
centre of the deck, and bulging forward, as if
proud of the glistering new varnish with which
they had been profusely lacquered.

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 285

Aha !" cried the Burgomaster, standing up
as they approached, and snuffing the air with
an appearance of most inordinate satisfaction —
" I smell them already ; delicious ! and all
from Amboyna ; think of that ! Ah, my darling
Vrouw Roosje! Isn't she a beauty? As high,
and as deep, and as round as a church, and all
spices, aha P*

As soon as the cutter was identified, the
Roosje fired a salute from some small guns upon
the deck, and the crew gave three cheers, which
the Burgomaster acknowledged by taking off
his hat and waving it above his head. Appa-
rently at a loss how to express the overflowing
of his satisfaction, he at last hit upon the ex-
pedient of laughing outright, and continued
chuckling and ejaculating, " Aha !" till they
came under the vessel's side ; but he would not
suffer Jocelyn to go on board till they had
pulled round her and admired the stern, whose
two little deeply-inserted cabin-windows re-
sembled the disproportionately small eyes in the

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

monstrous head of the whale. Jocelyn would
not interrupt the ecstasies of her owner by re-
fusing to participate in his admiration; although
the object before him appeared as shapeless as
if it were the floating carcase of a defunct kraken.
Before they mounted the ladder, the doating
proprietor actually kissed and mumbled the
ship's side, ejaculating, " Aha ! my aromatic
charmer ! my darling Vrouw Roosje ! what
a beauty art thou ! stately as the bark of the
Argonauts ; elegant as Cleopatra's yacht ; pre-
cious as the sacred vessel of the Athenians !"

With this classical salutation he mounted ;
and seating himself on the capstan, while his
whole frame seemed to swell with exultation, he
looked triumphantly around, and continued —
" There ! show me the monarch in Christendom
that sits more proudly upon his throne, than
does Adrian Beverning upon the capstan of the
Vrouw Roosje."— Then calling for a silver
goblet which he had brought with him in the
cutter, he filled it with Cyprus wine, and drink-

ERAMBLETYE HOUSE. 287

ing health to the captain and crew, with success
to the Vrouw Roosje, he emptied it at a draught.
Jocelyn was now paraded through every part of
the Indiaman, in whose capacious hold he still
saw such a mass of spices, that he could not
help expressing a doubt whether they would
ever be consumed. " Dulce est e magno tollere
acervo," cried the Burgomaster ; — " they are
Amboyna, young man, and will keep for years ;
think of that f Fire is a sure consumer, when
the supply exceeds the demand ; but all our
warehouses are empty, and Europe is bare.
This whole cargo will shortly be turned into
gold : is not this the genuine alchemy, young
man ? aha ! "

Wearied with being obliged to descend lad-
ders, climb perpendicular steps, and pry into
every noisome nook of the vessel, Jocelyn gladly
obeyed a summons to partake of a collation in
the captain's cabin ; and with still greater satis-
faction did he lower himself over the swelling
side of the cutter, that was to reconvey them to.

283 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

Rotterdam. A gratuity in money and a double
allowance of liquor having been distributed
among the sailors, they cheered their owner
upon his departure with hearty shouts, in which
our hero was half-disposed to join, when he con-
sidered that he was leaving this floating ware-
house, and returning to enjoy the society of
Constantia.

On the way back his companion said but little ;
indulging apparently his own spicy thoughts,
and confirming his complacency by the smoke
of his meerschaum. In this silent state of hap-
piness he regained the quay of the Boompies,
when a bundle of letters was put into his hand
by a clerk who was awaiting his appearance.
One of them proved to be a circular from a
house at Amsterdam, announcing the establish-
ment of a shop for the sale of madders. In^
stantly turning it round, and observing by the
direction that the postage had not been paid,
he angrily exclaimed, " Donder ende blixem !
are we to be ruined ? Wat de duivel ! cannot

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 289

these sordid varlets pay the postage when they
ask a favour ? Here, Dirk Jaagster ! run to
the post-office, give up the letter, and get back
the dubbeltje that we have paid." His coun-
tenance brightened up as he opened the second
letter, from whence he took a paper ; and after
ejaculating to himself, " Aha ! that is well !
good luck, good luck ! " he inquired where they
had placed the large case, of which he held
the bill of lading in his hand. Being told it
was in the weighing-house, he thrust the re-
mainder of the letters into his pocket unopened,
seized Jocelyn's arm, and, leading him hastily
forward, whispered in his ear : " A case of an-
tique marbles from my agent in the Island of
^Egina. He ordered excavations to be made
in the ruins of the Temple of Jupiter, and has
discovered some rare entablatures. Aha, young
man, think of that ! But the rogue makes me
pay gold for stones ; he has drawn upon me for
twelve hundred ducats. Hey, Slapperloot ! it
is money, Sir, money."

VOL. II. O

#90 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

While he was superintending the unpacking of
the cases, and anxiously giving such directions
as might prevent injury to their contents, a mes-
senger arrived to inform him that his brother
Burgomasters were sitting in council upon the
subject of despatches just received, and requested
the immediate attendance of their chairman.
Dismissing the man with a promise of present
compliance, he whispered to Jocelyn : " Not an
inch do I stir, till I have perused my own more
interesting despatches from ^Egina ; so they
may e'en wag their heads at one another for the
next half hour. Have a care, A art Graauw ! —
gently, Epje Loover ! Aha ! a prize indeed !
Here is the goat Amalthaea, and there are the
Corybantes beating their cymbals at the com-
mand of Ops : all beautifully executed, and in
high preservation. Think of that, Cavaliero
Compton ! I like to pry into these old stones.
What says Cicero ? 6 Nescire quid antequam
natus sis accident, id est semper esse puerum.
Ahaf"

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

Although a second officer came to summon
him to the council-house, he continued looking
on, and cautioning the men not to hurry them-
selves, until the case was emptied ; when taking
a leisurely survey of his acquisition, and express-
ing his high satisfaction with the execution and
subjects of the marbles, he prepared to take his
seat at the council-board; desiring Jocelyn to
proceed to the dinner-room, and direct Constan-
tia not to wait his arrival, as he knew not how
long he should be detained.

" We are accustomed to these disappoint-
ments," said Constantia, upon his delivering his
message. " My father has such a multiplicity
of avocations, and would so much rather neglect
a meal than a commission, that I am often ob-
liged to do the honours of his table. If he is,
as they tell me, the greatest man in Rotterdam,
it only means that he is the master of every body
but himself. For my part, I smile at the wealth
that cannot purchase comfort ; and would much
rather be unknown and independent, than a
o 2

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

slave to the good opinion of the public. I
sometimes fear he suffers himself to be so much

absorbed "

" The dinner has been announced," inter-
posed Miss Vanspaacken ; " the Burgomaster
particularly desired that we should not wait ;
and there is a matelote of eels, my favourite
dish, which will be spoiled if suffered to cool."
Such weighty considerations were not to be neg-
lected ; and they proceeded accordingly to their
repast, during the progress of which Jocelyn
first imbibed that mortal dislike of Miss Van-
spaacken, which every day's subsequent obser-
vation only tended to confirm. She was starch,
prim, and pragmatical ; at the same time that
she was officious, meddling, and fidgety, even to
a degree of impertinence. Originally the keeper
of a small school, she afterwards became gover-
ness in the Burgomaster's family, where she was
still retained, rather out of kindness to herself,
than as being now thought the most fitting com-
panion for Constantia. With an infirmity not

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 293

uncommon in females of her class after their
official duties have ceased, she still seemed to
imagine herself surrounded by children whom
she might annoy with her frivolous dictation.
She piqued herself upon the exact collocation
of pins and pronouns, of tuckers and tenses ;
her favourite piece of pedantry being the rigor-
ous use of the subjunctive mood, wherever it
was dictated by grammarians and was disre-
garded in colloquial parlance ; while she was as
precise in the pronunciation of every syllable as
if a pop-gun were making its first attempt at
an oration. For lack of other pupils, she had
established a kind of seminary for household
furniture. On first entering the drawing-room
in the morning, she cast a scrutinising mathema-
tical glance around her school ; and any scholar,
that was even the tenth-part of an inch out of its
place, was instantly corrected and called to
order. The chimney-ornaments were taught
where and how to place themselves, the flowers
were made to hold up their heads, the tongs to

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

turn out their toes, the poker to carry itself up-
right, the shovel to assume a becoming and
decent attitude ; every chair was instructed what
position to assume, the truant pins upon the
carpet were made to return into their pin-
cushion, and she seemed to find a peculiar plea-
sure in imposing penance upon a China jar by
making it stand by itself in a corner. With a
plumasseau, or little feather-brush, in her hand,
(the only rod that was left to her,) she went the
round of her inanimate scholars, uttering a
malison against slatternly housemaids ; and
switching off any stray dust she encountered,
with an angry jerk, that appeared to recall the
former delight of rapping her negligent pupils
upon the sconce.

Had she been content to exercise none but a
parlour jurisdiction, this pedagogue in petticoats
might have been endurable ; but she unfortu-
nately extended her claims of pupilage over the
kitchen. Her own reputation being as spotless
as her gown, she thought herself warranted to

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

295

take the characters of the maids under her pro-
per surveillance; checking their amusements, and
watching their little flirtations, as if she were at
once the mistress, mother, and duenna of the
whole establishment. Men-servants who had
been all their lives acquiring a knowledge of
their business, had to learn it afresh from her.
No napkin was ever folded properly, no spoon
was ever turned the right way, no silver was ever
cleaned as it ought to be, no salt-cellar occu-
pied its exact position. A mean inquisition
into cupboards and perquisites being added to
this teasing, troublesome, and petty persecu-
tion, she contrived to worry the best servants
into mutiny, and to make the family, the do-
mestics, and the guests, all equally uncomforta-
ble. Minutely as the Burgomaster attended to
the most trivial mercantile details, he never be-
stowed a thought upon household arrangements;
Constantia was absorbed in loftier contempla-
tions than those of the menage. ; and thus its
entire supervision fell into the power of Miss

296 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

Vanspaacken, who converted it into a perpetual
domestic war.

In Jocelyn's eyes she could never have pos-
sessed a single qualification for her office of
governess except her plainness, — a recommenda-
tion which may appear strange to the uninitiated
reader, but which will be duly appreciated by
all those mistresses of families who happen to
have gay husbands or grown-up sons. When,
however, Jocelyn saw this superficial precisian,
this automatical smatterer, perking up her
pinched unmeaning features towards the en-
larged orbs and intellectual countenance of
Constantia, and presuming to catechise one
whose thoughts moved in a superior sphere,
which she could neither reach nor comprehend,
he would have been moved to indignation at her
conceit, had it not at the same time appeared so
preposterously ludicrous, as generally to termi-
nate his observation by a vehement tendency to
laughter. He could compare it to nothing
-but the stupid owl upon Minerva's helm

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 297

gravely presuming to instruct the Goddess of
Wisdom.

We perhaps owe an apology to our readers
for detaining them so long from the dinner-table,
e specially for Miss Vanspaacken, who never suf-
fered the guests to delay their descent to the
dining-room, when her matelote of eels was
ready. She had devoured the whole of that in-
gratiating condiment with her usual mechanical
perseverance, and the repast was already half
finished, when the Burgomaster made his ap-
pearance ; and having affectionately kissed Con-
stantia, nodded familiarly to Jocelyn with an
" Aha, Signer Cavaliero !" and to the ex-gover-
nante, with a " Hoe vaart gy, Joffer Vanspaac-
ken/' he sate himself hastily down to the table.
" O those tiresome old beard-waggers !M he ex-
claimed to our hero : " despatches, indeed ! they
know not the meaning of the word ; nor would
they have sent them off till midnight, had I not
arrived to quicken them. While they were
listening to the nonsense that came out of their
o 5

298 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

own mouths, they forgot that no dinner had en-
tered mine, though I had fortunately secured a
snack on board my darling Vrouw Roosje. See
the difference between a beggar and a burgo-
master ! the former cannot find a dinner to eat,
and the latter cannot find time to eat his dinner.
Aha ! think of that !"

With an apparent resolution of atoning for
lost time, he plied his knife and fork vigor-
ously for a few minutes, when he again ad-
dressed Jocelyn : " Hey, Slapperloot ! is't mo-
gelyk ! I quite forgot the wine. What say you,
Signer Lansridder, Sir Knight of the Lance ?
Merum adimit mcerorem; so fill your glass.
What shall it be ? Cyprus, Canary, Rhenish, Ma-
laga, Gascoigne, or this rare old Constantia from
my vineyards at the Cape ? I named my daugh-
ter after my own estate in that settlement, and
the baggage is now dearer to me than all the
estates in the colony ; more heart-cheering than
all the grape-juice that was ever quaffed from
cup. Her gossip's posset was made of this very

BIIAMBLETYE HOUSE. 299

batch of wine, when she was christened ; so we
will e'en drink her health in it, now that the
lapse of eighteen years has made the one a cor-
dial, and the other a no, I must not say a

beauty, but a grown maiden, and the darling of
her father's heart."

He filled his glass at the conclusion of this
speech, Jocelyn did the same, Miss Vanspaacken
always took care of herself upon such occasions,
and the whole party drank to the health of Con-
stantia, who acknowledged their courtesy with
a gracious smile, which appeared the more fas-
cinating to Jocelyn, because it was so rarely seen
to mantle upon her pensive countenance. Shortly
after the repast, the Burgomaster, as it was the
foreign-post-night, again betook himself to the
counting-house, whence he did not return till a
late hour, so that our hero enjoyed the society
of Constantia during the whole evening ; a plea-
sure, however, that was not a little qualified by
the jealous and inexorable presence of Miss
Vanspaacken.

300 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

In a few days after he had thus been domi-
ciliated in the Burgomaster's family, he re-
ceived the following letter from Sir John, in an-
swer to one he had written to him, explaining
the causes of his sudden flight from England.

" Out upon thee ! my dear boy, for a hot-
headed ass, and a hasty! — what ! the foul fiend I
is 't not enough to have a choleric old fool in the
family, that thou must add a young one to the
list, and take pepper in the nose about matters
that concerned thee not ? What a plague had
the Queen's Vice-Chamberlain to do with the
King's concubine, even had he presented a dozen
of them to the Portuguese gypsey, black Katha-
rine, who, I am told, is a dowdy, and is certainly
a papist, and wouldn't mind another gun-
powder plot, I dare say, if she met with a snug
opportunity. 'Sblood, sir ! has the country been
ravaged with fire and sword for ten years toge-
ther, to bring back Rowland ; and isn't he to do
as he likes, now we have got him, — and with his

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 301

own Queen too ? One would think you were as
big a Roundhead as any of the crop-eared, red-
coated saints ; and yet you ought to remember
the old royalist snatch I have often sung to
you.

' Yet in this we agree,
To live quiet and free,
To drink sack and submit,
And not show our wit
By our prating, but silence and thinking,
And prove our obedience by drinking.'

" Had you attended to the last two lines, you
luckless malapert ! you might soon have been in
such favour with Rowland^ as to get the Bram-
bletye estate restored, and the roguish Round-
head, that keeps me out of it, shipped off to the
Barbadoes, of which I see no more chance now
than I did when you left us.

" By the by, we were very near nabbing
the black ghost t' other night. Culpepper saw
her squatting like a great black toad in the
stone niche of one of the lodges, looking up at
the towers, and spitting out anathemas and

302 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

curses, as if she were possessed by Beelzebub.
The fellow had heard so many stories about this
Will-o'-the-wisp in black petticoats, that he wavS
frightened and ran away. Indeed he swears
that her eyes glared and sparkled in the dark
like a couple of candles, while the hair upon her
head bristled up, as he approached, like an angry
boar's mane. Curse the slippery witch ! if ho-
nest Jack Whittaker had been there, he would
have seized her by the throat as a terrier does
a weasel : and if I do not give her the witch's
ordeal, when she is once caught, and drag her
nine times round the moat, sink or swim, may I
be nailed up against my own barn-door for a
scarecrow !

" 'Ods heart ! my dear boy, Jocelyn ! if things
go cross with thee, they go worse with thy
father. The gout still ties me by the leg, and
this damned Juffrouw Weegschaal, or Lady
Compton, as I suppose I must call her, baits
and worries me like a bear at a stake. I am
sorry you have got among such a set of pot-

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 303

walloping, pinch-penny skin-flints ; but I don't
think they 're so bad in their own country. I
have been trying to patch up a truce, but we
can't agree even about that. We are like the
folks in the ballad —

* Come then let 's have peace, says Nell :

No, no, but we won't, says Nic :
But I say we will, says fiery-faced Phi 1
We will and we won't, says Dick.'

" Truly it 's no laughing or singing matter, but
sad and melancholy work, to be mewed up as I
am in the moated house, with gouty feet, and
a wife that threatens to starve me till I am as
lank as a greyhound. Devil a guinea do I
finger now-a-days; and I suppose I shall be
ultimately reduced to tipple swipes, like a
ditcher or a swine-herd. Prythee, my dear boy,
settle matters with the Court, come over, and
see what thou canst do for me. I have got a
bottle of claret to-day, in which I am now
drinking your health ; but I have no heart to
write any more, for I have just finished the last

304 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

glass : so God bless you, my dear, choleric, ill-
starred, peppery, passionate, noble-hearted, own
— own — own Jocelyn ! These from your affec-
tionate father, JOHN COMPTON."

In a few days after this, he received also a
letter from Tracy, stating that Bagot was still
living, though considered to be in continual
danger ; and that, as it was now understood that
Jocelyn had made his escape to Holland, the
ardour of pursuit had relaxed, and the subject
ceased to be much talked of at Court. In this
despatch was an inclosure, which he perused
with no little pride. It was an autograph letter
of a few lines from the Queen, indited in
French, and written on yellow paper, stamped
with the royal arms of Portugal, bidding him
be of good cheer, since she would not fail to use
her exertions for his re-appointment when the
proper moment arrived, and signed—" Your
friend — Katharine."" This act of condescension
Jocelyn mentioned with a justifiable vanity to

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 305

iis host's family, and even showed the commu-
nication to some visitants who happened to be
dining at the Burgomaster's on the day that he
received it.

Our hero had now abundant opportunity for
observing the numerous virtues, and appre-
ciating the exalted character, of Constantia.
Cut off by an utter discrepancy of tastes, habits,
and pursuits from all intimacy of communion
with the boozing boors and smoking money-
getters that occupied the upper sphere of society
in the mercantile town of Rotterdam, her sym-
pathies found a vent in the exercise of an almost
unbounded charity towards the lower and more
necessitous classes. To these pious offices she
was impelled, not less by her religious convic-
tions and a deep sense of duty, than by the na-
turally overflowing and enthusiastic kindness
of her disposition. In founding schools for the
young, infirmaries for the sick, and alms-houses
for the old and helpless, she had already ex-
pended thirty or forty thousand ducats of the

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

Burgomaster's money, who never grudged the
supplies, when the poor formed the objects of his
bounty, and Constantia was his almoner. To
the grievous discomfort of Miss Vanspaacken,
that lady was always doomed to be the com-
panion of her charitable visits to the abodes
of wretchedness. In vain did she turn up her
nose, assume a still sourer and more distasteful
expression than usual, and exclaim about the
dangers of infection: in vain did she declare
that it was horribly ungenteel, not to say inde-
corous, for two young ladies to be seen coming
out of such disreputable-looking hovels : — ac-
tuated by a high impression of duty, alike unso-
licitous of human applause, and indifferent to
invidious misconstruction, Constantia continued
her course undaunted, dispensing happiness
wherever she moved, and almost worshiped as
a ministering angel by the numerous objects of
her benevolence.

The charms of female friendship had been
added to the gratifications derived from charity ;

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 307

for Jocelyn had often heard her mention, in
terms of fervent and unbounded attachment, a
young Englishwoman, called Julia Strickland,
who had for some time resided at Rotterdam
with her parents, though circumstances had
since compelled them to take up their abode in
the Austrian Netherlands. As to the fire of
love, however, she had been hitherto ignorant
of its existence, because it had wanted an object
on which to fix ; but, thoifgh dormant, it was not
extinct. Jocelyn supplied that object ; and when
the spark was once awakened, the natural en-
thusiasm of her temperament soon kindled it
into a flame. He was the first noble specimen
of human nature that she had ever contem-
plated ; for as to the baser beings with whom
she had been hitherto surrounded, she would no
more dignify them with the name of men, than
would Miranda have bestowed that appellation
upon Caliban. Virtually, he was to her what
Ferdinand had been to the solitary island-
nymph ; and her attachment, like that of Pros-

308 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

pero's daughter, was sudden and deep, because
it partook of surprise not less than of admira-
tion. She was no longer so happy as she had
been ; she felt an unsatisfied void in her heart ;
she knew that her bosom enjoyed not its wonted
peace ; but yet she knew not that her complaint
was love.

Will it be believed that Jocelyn, who, from
the first moment that he had been transfixed
by her large expressive eyes, had never lost the
recollection of those glorious orbs— who had
cherished the thought of again encountering
them, with all the romantic constancy of a first
love — who had been so possessed with her
charms, even in a transient glance, as to look
with apathy upon every other beauty — who,
since he had become acquainted with the being
that had thus bewitched his imagination, had
seen nothing that was not calculated to exalt
and sublimise his passion — will it be believed,
that Jocelyn was less devoted to her now, than
when he worshipped her as the unknown beauty

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 309

with the large and lustrous eyes ? And yet he
had not been deluded by his fancy : his warmest
anticipations fell infinitely short of the reality :
her personal attractions exceeded all that he
had pictured in idea ; and he had never cal-
culated upon her musical talents, her intellectual
endowments, her fervent piety, her unwearied
. benevolence, and the unassuming modesty that
chastened the effulgence of her virtues.

Inconsistent as it may sound, it was perhaps
this very excess above his hopes that excited in
him something like a feeling of disappointment.
When she impressed upon him in her discourse
the beauty of holiness, the charms of charity,
the happiness of virtue, and illustrated by
example that which she enforced by precept, he
looked up to her with respect, admiration, re-
verence,— but not with love. He could gaze
upon her with delight as a vestal, a saint, a
superior being, set apart for high and holy
purposes ; but he could not fancy the fair en-
thusiast as a mistress or a wife. Naturally gay

310 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

and lively himself, he looked for something
spirited, sparkling, and vivacious in the partner
who was to cheer his present hours and gladden
the decline of life. Constantia was pensive, if
not grave ; and the seriousness of youth might
easily deepen into melancholy in maturer life.
She sometimes smiled, but rarely laughed.
He liked not a monitress for his wife; still
less did he desire a mope : and he was himself
startled at the versatility of the human heart,
when he recalled the passion of his first im-
pressions, and wound up his present sum-
mary of her qualifications, by ejaculating —
" No ; I feel that I could never love Con-
stantia !"

This conviction received confirmation from
the lapse of time : his admiration increased as
every warmer sentiment diminished ; and he
was never less disposed to desire her as a wife,
than when she received his most unqualified
homage as a woman. An opposite process was
unfortunately developing itself in the mind of

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 311

Constantia : the stranger whom she had at first
contemplated with simple admiration, was now
converted into an inmate that had become ne-
cessary to her happiness ; and she kept feeding
her heart with a passion that only grew more
intense as it became more hopeless.

War had now broken out between England
and Holland, — a circumstance which in the first
instance threw Constantia more than ever into
the society of Jocelyn, by occasioning the Bur-
gomaster to make frequent excursions to Am-
sterdam, and to become deeply implicated in
political intrigue and faction ; though ultimately
it necessitated our hero to fly suddenly from the
asylum he had chosen, leaving the love-stricken
Constantia to feel for the first time the depth
of the wound that had been inflicted upon her
heart.

" Donder ende blixem !" cried the agitated
Burgomaster, as he hurried one evening into
Jocelyn's apartment ; "I told you that Alder-
man Staunton should have known better than to

312 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

consign you to me. Genadigste God ! it was a
black day, nigro lapide notandus, when you
took up your ill-omened abode under my roof !
Aha ! young man, you have the unlucky mark
upon you : Jonas was not a more inauspicious
shipmate. I remember, I met the Aansprecker *
on the day of your arrival."

" What can possibly have justified such fore-
bodings ?" inquired Jocelyn, not a little dis-
mayed at this exordium.

" Hey, Slapperloot ! forebodings ?" .. resumed
the Burgomaster ; " they are something worse
than fancies, Signor Cavaliero. You may find
that your coming hither has been * Van den
wal in de sloot/ as we say in Holland ; out of
the frying-pan into the fire, Incidis in Scyllam,
young man. I told you I had enemies, villains
of N the Orange faction, who will swear away a
man's life and fortune for a zesthalven or a dub-
beltje. Some of these pestilent rogues have not

* Messengers dressed in a funeral garb, who are sent
to inform people of the death of their friends.

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 318

only laid an information before their High
Mightinesses, that I hold frequent and secret
communications with the Austrian Netherlands
and with England, a circumstance which I can
easily and satisfactorily explain ; but that I en-
tertain an English spy in my house, one who, it
can be proved, receives letters from the Queen of
England, and people about the Court, who sends
despatches in return, and is vehemently sus-
pected of having given the information that led
to the recent defeat of our fleet. Upon this state-
ment, which is verified upon oath, the great
council are at this moment sitting ; and there
can be little question that you will be instantly,
committed to prison, while I shall be cited to
Amsterdam. Aha ! young man, think of that !
For myself, my wealth and influence, which are
better than innocence, will presently get me
clear ; but the Government are sadly in want of
some victim to appease the popular fury at our
defeat ; and, to deal candidly with you, I do not
think your head is worth two days1 purchase,

VOL. II. P

314 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

if you remain in Holland. Aha! think of
that !"

" Good heavens !" ejaculated Jocelyn, " they
will not murder a man who can prove his inno-
cence ?"

" They will give you no opportunity of esta-
blishing any such unwelcome truth," replied the
Burgomaster. " You will be put purposely in
the way of the enraged populace ; and, after you
have been massacred, you can have no occasion
for a trial."

" What, then, do you recommend me to do ?"
inquired Jocelyn, with some agitation.

" There is but one course to adopt," resumed
the Burgomaster ; " you must fly instantly.
Circumstances, which I must not divulge, have
occasioned a friend of mine, one of your coun-
trymen, a Mr. Strickland, to secrete himself in
the Austrian Netherlands; and it is my corre-
spondence with this gentleman that has origi-
nated one of these rascally charges, which, in-
stead of falling upon my own head, shall pre-

BEAMBLETYE HOUSE. 315

sently crush my accusers. I will not be ac-
quitted only, but revenged. Quanto innocentior,
tanto frontosior, as was said of Janus. I will
pull down my accusers, were each of them as
tall as the statue of Erasmus. Hey, Slapper-
loot ! Adrian Beverning is not to be felled with
a straw, nor pounded with a feather, aha !"

" But you were speaking of Mr. Strickland,"
interposed our hero.

" Donder ende blixem !" continued the in-
dignant Burgomaster, not noticing this interrup-
tion ; " am I to be cited to Amsterdam, as if I
were a whipper-snapper apprentice ? Are they to
issue their orders to a man of a million — think
of that, Signor Cavaliero, to a man of a million,
aha ! as if he had not a stiver in his pouch ? By
de heere God ! they had better catch a wild Tar-
tar by the beard, or tweak the mustachoes of the
Great Mogul. What were you saying, young
man ?"

" You alluded to a Mr. Strickland," repeated
Jocelyn.

316 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

" True, true ; His to his hiding-place, which is
a sure and snug one, that I mean to consign
you. He is timid, reserved, solitary, and will
not like an interloper ; but " Hy moet wel loopen
die door de duivel gedreven woed ;" how say
you that in English ? Quick ! Signor Cavaliero,
quick ! Night draws on, and you must be down
at Dordrecht before the moon is up. You shall
have one of my servants to attend you, whom I
have always employed in my communications
with Strickland, because he speaks English as
well as Dutch ; and the pony he always rides,
and which, by this time, must know the way
blindfold, shall have the honour to convey you
out of the territory of these domineering and sus-
picious Hooghen Mooghens. Never mind your
effects, they shall follow you. Besides, better lose
a hat-box than a head : so presto ! are you ready?"
Jocelyn declared that he only required ten
minutes for preparation ; and hastily putting to-
gether, in a small valise, such articles as were
more immediately necessary for his journey, he

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 317

ran to take leave of Constantia. A confused
murmur through the house, and the bustle in-
cident to the Burgomasters hasty arrangements,
had prepared her for some unusual intelligence ;
but she started and changed colour when she un-
derstood the imminent danger with which he was
threatened. " This is sudden, indeed," she ex-
claimed, " and not less painful than unexpected.
We shall miss you sadly, indeed we shall ! To
Haelbeck, did ^ou say? then you will see my
beautiful friend, Julia Strickland." — Casting her
looks down to the ground at these words, she
seemed for a few seconds to yield herself to some
painful thought; but quickly raising up her head,
and shaking back the locks that had fallen over
her fine eyes, she continued with a proud ani-
mation : " and you will see the purest and no-
blest of her sex — one of whom I may well boast
as my friend, and you as your countrywoman.
But why waste we a moment, when your safety
is at stake ? For God's sake ! fly, Mr. Compton !
every instant is precious."

318 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

" I have first a restoration to make," said
Jocelyn, " which I ought to apologise to Miss

Beverning for not having sooner performed- "

and he put into her hands the white scarf of
which he had kept possession ever since the
Tournament at Paris.

Perhaps Constantia was rather piqued that he
had not evinced a greater disposition to retain it
as a memorial ; for as she received it she replied
coldly, if not proudly — " It is a trifle, Sir,
which I had altogether forgotten." In a mo-
ment, however, her tenderness returned, and,
holding out her hand to Jocelyn, she exclaimed,
— " Farewell, Mr. Compton ; lose not another
second, I implore you ! You are innocent ; you
will have the consolations of religion. God
grant that you may be happy ! " As if afraid
of trusting herself any longer to the emotions
that were already imparting a tremulousness to
her voice, and beginning to suffuse her eyes,
she bowed with an affectionate look to Jocelyn,
and walked hastily out of the room.

feRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 319

" Aha, Sir Lansridder ! Sir Knight of the
Lance," cried the Burgomaster, who was coming
to hasten his departure, though he had stopped
on the way to clear his pipe with a silver picker ;
" the horses are waiting ; better five hours too
soon, than as many seconds too late : your head
may move off before you do, if you linger in
Rotterdam. Think of that, young man ! Here
is a letter to my friend Strickland. Away with
you over the frontiers ; write to me if you want
money : and so fare thee well, Signor Cavaliero !
Dii tibi dent quse velis ! " With this valedictory
prayer and a hearty shake of the hand, the
worthy Burgomaster took his leave; Jocelyn
immediately mounted his pony, trotted along
the streets, followed by his Anglo-Dutch ser-
vant, passed through the gate, and turned his
back upon the populous, busy, and thriving city
of Rotterdam.

320 BEAMBLETYE HOUSE.

CHAPTER VIII.

This the seat

That we must change for heaven ? this mournful

gloom,
For that celestial light ? MILTON.

THE servant who had been selected to accom-
pany Jocelyn, had been several years in the
Burgomaster's family, where he bore the some-
what ludicrous name of Winky Boss, the former
being a sobriquet originally applied to him by
some of the English clerks, from his odd habit
of winking his eyes ; and the latter, a nick-name
also, of uncertain Dutch origin ; but both so na-
turalised by process of time, as to have com-
pletely superseded his baptismal and patronymic
appellations. Under a boorish slouching ex-
terior, and a heavy phlegmatic physiognomy,

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

he possessed a good deal of shrewdness and
some little humour ; qualities for which no one
would have given him credit from a casual ob-
servation. His eyes seemed to be the only fea-
ture that could express emotion of any sort.
Their twinkling was a sure index to his feelings ;
his fellow-servants being enabled to discover an-
ger in the quickness of the motion and spark-
ling of the orbs, or laughter in their sleepy leer,
while all the rest of his countenance preserved
its usual imperturbable phlegm. Like many of
his countrymen, he considered his pipe almost
a part and parcel of himself ; while he stoutly
maintained, that owing to the moisture and
fogginess of the climate, it was highly salu-
tiferous and desirable to swallow a dram
wherever and whensoever it could be obtained.
His sobriety, notwithstanding, was unimpeach-
able : he could drink all day with impunity :
you might as well attempt to intoxicate a
sponge.

The pony upon which Jocelyn was mounted
p 5

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

had so long been accustomed to carry Winky
Boss, who was a sort of domestic courier in the
family, that it had acquired something of its
master's phlegmatical character. Out of the re-
gular bumping jog-trot to which it had been
accustomed, but which its present rider held in
special abhorrence, it evinced a stubborn resolu-
tion not to deviate ; and when Jocelyn endea-
voured to substitute his own will by a smart ap-
plication of the whip, the mutinous quadruped
gave such a sudden plunge, and then stopped
short, that any less expert horseman would have
been infallibly shot over its head. As it was,
the present rider did not appear likely to gain
much by keeping his seat ; for the only motion
he could prevail upon the little mulish muti-
neer to adopt was the rotatory, which it in-
creased in velocity in the same ratio as he re-
doubled the chastisement. Like a squirrel in a
cage, our hero was now in full motion, though
making very little advance ; and it would have

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 323

been difficult to pronounce which he was most
effectually losing — his time or his temper. Any
one who could have inspected his attendant's
eyes at this spectacle, would have observed
five little wrinkles at the corners, as if they
were holding their sides with laughter ; the orbs
glistened all over with a silent chuckle ; but as
to the varlet himself, he sate looking on, as grave
and unmoved as a judge; smoking his pipe,
and apparently in no kind of hurry for the con-
clusion of the discussion.

" How far are we from Dordrecht ?'' inquired
our hero, out of breath with his exertions, and
still performing an involuntary pirouette.

" About three pipes," replied Boss, who had
no other idea of mensuration.

" As you a. e accustomed to this restive and
intractable brute," said Jocelyn, " you can per-
haps manage him better than myself, and in
that case we may as well change horses."

" He is the quietest and the best pony in

BRAMELETYE HOUSE.

all Holland," replied Boss : " you may treat
him as you like, and make him do what you
please, if you only attend to two rules.11

" And, prythee, what are these magical
secrets," said Jocelyn, " that are to convert a
wrong-headed mule, which seems to have been
intended for a live tetotum, into the best pony
in all Holland?"

" You must never strike him, and you must
always let him choose his own pace.11

" Then, in fact he is to be the master instead
of myself," said Jocelyn.

" Ja, mijn heer," replied Boss, " and that
will be the better for both of you ; for the pace
he will choose will be an easy trot, the best
adapted for such a long journey as cur's, and
which he will keep up for a day and night to-
gether, when a stronger-looking animal, such as
that I am riding, would drop from under you."
Dismounting at these words, he went up to the
little animal, which was still angrily shaking its

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 325

ears and circumvolving ; and calling to it by the
name of Punchinello, it instantly stopped, and,
whinnying as it recognized its old rider, held
up its head to receive the embraces which he
bestowed upon it, with a greater appearance of
affection than could have been expected from
so lumpish a stoic. Better acquainted now with
its peculiar temper, Jocelyn patted and caressed
his nag, which instantly fell with alacrity into
its regular pace, and both parties continued to
jog on for some time with every external sign of
amity and reconciliation. This truce, however,
was not of long continuance ; for, on their shortly
afterwards approaching a bridge, the animal
suddenly bolted on one side, scrambled down
the bank to the stream, where it had occa-
sionally been led to drink by Boss, and, laying
itself down in the middle of the current, left
Jocelyn to scramble from its back, and wade to
the opposite shore in the best way he could.
Fortunately the water was not deep, so that

326 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

he escaped for a wetting, which was sufficient,
however, to render the remainder of his ride
uncomfortable.

Winky Boss, in the meantime, had drawn
up his heavy Flemish steed on the further side,
where, by the help of a full-moon, he sate
enjoying the catastrophe, his eyes rolling in
laughter, but the rest of his countenance solemn
and imperturbable ; while the smoke oozed from
a little aperture at one corner of his mouth, with
its usual regularity of puff.

" Curse you, for a phlegmatical Dutch stock-
fish !" cried Jocelyn, provoked at his apathy ;
" have you mounted me upon this perverse and
skittish devil, that I might afford you amuse-
ment ? Is this another customary trick of the
best pony in all Holland ?"

" Neen, mijn heer, not customary," replied
Boss calmly, " though he served me so once ;
but that was before I knew him, and when
I was fool enough to maltreat him. This is
nothing but a little playful bit of revenge:

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 827

a ducking for a whipping, that 's all. It is
his way of crying quits ; and I will forfeit my
head, which you will please to recollect includes
my pipe, if he gives you any further trouble :
that is to say, provided you observe the rules."

" And provided also," added Jocelyn, " that
we can coax or pelt the brute out of the water,
where it seems disposed to take up its quarters
for the night."

" As he assuredly would, if you offered to
pelt him," continued Boss ; " but we will try a
better method." So saying, he went to the
water-side, and calling out, " So, ho ! Punchi-
nello! Punchinello !" the pony whinnied, raised
itself from its position, and, trotting up to Boss,
rubbed its head against his arm with all the
familiarity and tameness of a dog. " Now, then,
for another essay !" said Jocelyn, reseating him-
self in the saddle ; " we shall in time have a bet-
ter insight into one another's character, and may
therefore hope to be upon more friendly terms
together during the remainder of our ride." As

328 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

they approached Dordrecht, however, he began
to be apprehensive of fresh bickerings ; for Pun-
chinello again quitted the road, and trotted
up to the door of a low house, where lie stood
still and whinnied. Jocelyn was looking round
to his companion for an explanation of this new
freak, when the door opened, and a squat little
Vrouw, muffled up in a worsted hood, exclaimed :
" Hoe vaart gy ? Hoe vaart gy, Meester Boss ?"
at the same time extending to Jocelyn a long
narrow glass of Schiedam gin. The party for
whom the dram was intended, rapidly inter-
posed his arm, took the glass, and, instantly
tossing off the contents to prevent further mis-
take, said to Jocelyn : " This is the sign of the
Herring-Buss, mijn heer; a very good house,
where Punchinello, poor fellow ! always stops
for a drop of water."

" And yourself for a glass of Schiedam,"" re-
plied Jocelyn, " which seems to be most mecha-
nically handed forth without even the ceremony
of an order."

BEAMBLETYE HOUSE.

" They always come to the door when they
hear Punchinello, give it," replied Boss, " and it
saves one the vexation of taking the pipe from
one's mouth." In justification of Punchinello's
imputed share in this short halt, a boy present-
ly appeared with a pail of water, of which the
pony took a draught ; when Boss tossed a stiver
to the young ostler, and they resumed their
journey. From subsequent observation, how-
ever, it became evident that the man was much
more interested in those baits than the beast ;
for the latter stopped, as a matter of course, at
every public-house upon the road ; and Boss
with equal regularity took his glass of Schiedam :
Jocelyn being afraid to interfere with Punchi-
nello's whims and fancies, lest he should break
out into fresh acts of insubordination ; and the
servirig-man declaring that it would appear
both mean and rude if he refused the dram,
after the pony had thus expressly called for it*
Thus they continued travelling all night, the
little nag fully confirming the favourable cha-

330 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

racter he had received, by quietly pursuing his
career as fresh and strong as when they first
started, until the increasing fatigue of the jaded
animal on which Boss was mounted, compelled
them to put up for a few hours, and give both
their steeds the refreshment and rest, of which
Jocelyn himself began by this time to be in
want ; although his companion, fortified by
his frequent drams, exhibited no symptoms of
fatigue or weariness.

After a short repose they continued their
journey on the following morning, their course
lying for some time along the banks of a canal,
bordered by a fine road and an avenue of trees
on one side, and on the other by rich pastures
and sleek cattle, interspersed with country resi-
dences, the gardens laid out in prim parterres
of flowers, and generally terminated by little
grotesquely-decorated summer-houses that over-
hung the canal. In these alcoves the proprie-
tors were often to be seen in their drugget caps
taking their morning pipe ; some recreating

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 331

themselves with the dun bier which Lady Comp-
ton had recommended to Jocelyn, though Sir
John had pronounced it to be swipes ; others
with the Zwaar bier, which may be designated
brown stout ; a few of the wealthier or more
extravagant sort indulging in Rhenish wine ;
and all awaiting the appearance of the next
Treekskuyt, or passage-boat, which passed and
repassed them with the utmost regularity at
fixed hours. By this conveyance they some-
times received letters, for whose reception a
little box overhung the canal ; and if they had
no despatches, there was a chance of a nod from
an acquaintance on the roof of the boat, or from
one of the windows below ; and at all events
they might inquire the news, and learn the last
market-prices of madders, spices, indigo, and
colonial produce at Rotterdam. In the course
of the morning's ride our hero overtook one of
these aquatic stages gliding methodically for-
ward at the rate of about four miles an hour,
and having on its roof an iron pot of burning

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

turf for the smoakers, of which Winky Boss
availed himself, having suffered his pipe, by a
rare act of inadvertence, to become extinguished.
Prosecuting their route without any other in-
termission than what was required by Boss's
horse, for Punchinello seemed to pick up
strength and freshness as he travelled, they
at length passed the frontier, and entered the
Austrian Netherlands, when they relaxed their
diligence, and proceeded more leisurely. On
the second afternoon of their travels in this
new territory, after ascending a gentle emi-
nence, Winky Boss rode up to Jocelyn, and,
pointing before him with his pipe, exclaimed —
"Yonder is the castle of Haelbeck;" when
he replaced the tube in his mouth, and re-
sumed his regulated whiffs. Our hero, at this
intimation, cast his eyes over a wild watery
waste, intersected with causeways, and dotted
here and there with stunted alders and wil-
lows, that marked a few fields and pastures

BItAMBLETYE HOUSE. 333

in which the cattle had very much the air of
being impounded. But at first he looked in
vain for the building, until upon a closer sur-
vey he distinguished the forlorn towers of the
castle rising from the midst of the swamp, and
so much resembling in colour the waters by
which they were surrounded, that they might
be rather deemed exhalations from the marsh,
than any edifice of human construction and
abode.

" Is yon miserable-looking place the resi-
dence of Mr. Strickland ?" inquired Jocelyn.

Winky Boss saved himself a monosyllable
by nodding his head.

" And does it always look out upon such a
sheet of water ?" resumed our hero.

" Not always," replied the party thus ad-
dressed, giving the risible leer to his eye : " in
fine weather you have less water and more mud
and slime."

" A pleasant and healthy exchange !" ex-

334 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

claimed Jocelyn : " and, in the name of wonder,
what can a man do with himself when im-
prisoned in this miserable morass ?"

" There are some rare carp and tench to be
caught in the shallows," replied his companion.

" But if a man detests the cruelty of draw-
ing them out of these shallows T9

" In that case," said Boss, " he had better
seek a deeper place, and throw himself in. I
don't see what else a man is to do who does not
smoke."

" Consolatory prospects !" cried Jocelyn : and
abstaining from any further queries, since the
answers they elicited were so little cheering, he
rode forward in silence towards his destined
place of refuge. Nothing could present a more
lonesome, melancholy, and insalubrious aspect,
than the inundated marsh in which Haelbeck
formed the sole secluded habitation. Every
where the waters were overspread with a mantle
of green weeds, whose uniformity was only
broken where the shallows allowed the alders,

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 335

mallows, flags, osiers, and other aquatic plants,
to shoot above the surface in rank overgrowth.
Communicating with the sluices and canals of
the interior, there was a sluggish motion in the
water which it required accurate inspection to
believe, and which, when discovered, imparted to
it a more slothful and sleepy effect than it would
have derived from absolute stagnation. In the
latter case, the element might have only appeared
to participate in the general immobility of mat-
ter, or the quietude of death ; but this crawling
of the surface implied some lingering remains of
life, a power of locomotion with too much laziness
or lassitude to exert it. Now and then stfme
bulky fish, that seemed to have been fattening
for many years in this undisturbed liquid desert,
floundered up from its oozy bed, breaking by
its sullen plash as it redescended into the water,
the deep, dead silence that hung over these
mournful swamps. The water-fowl that fre-
quented them did indeed sometimes interrupt it
by the flapping of their wings; and at other

336 BRAMDLETYE HOUSE.

times it was disturbed by the wailful cry of an
old solitary stork, which, having lost its mate,
continued to haunt the castle, upon whose roof
it had found a habitation. The very air seemed
to hang heavily and ominously over this watery
wilderness ; and Jocelyn felt an oppression of
spirits, in his approach to Haelbeck, which was
rather deepened than dissipated by a nearer
survey of the castle.

Built in a remote age, and suffered to fall into
decay, it had been repaired and fortified, by the
sanguinary Duke of Alva, as a station whose
natural strength rendered it a fitting depot for
his treasures ; while it might afford a safe place
of refuge for himself, in case of sudden disturb-
ance. Frederic of Toledo, his son, had inha-
bited it for some time ; but at a subsequent
period, the castle being found to be useless as
well as unhealthy, the fortifications were dis-
mantled, and allowed to fall a second time into
ruin ; no part being kept up but the range of
apartments which had formed the residence of

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 337

the last noble occupant. Neglect, lapse of time,
and the damp atmosphere, had rendered these
so forlorn as to be scarcely habitable, when the
present tenant, conceiving the abode well adapt-
ed to his purpose of concealment, obtained per-
mission, by a small gratuity to the governor of
the province, to bury himself and family within
its walls. The money, which he had since ex-
pended in partial repairs, had only rendered the
general dilapidation more signal and emphatic,
converting the whole pile into that most deso-
late of all objects, an inhabited ruin. A building
that is abandoned to the ravages of time lessens
our sympathy by appearing to be resigned to its
*fate; but when, as in this instance, man is seen
struggling with the fell destroyer, it awakens a
painful sense of human evanescency and of the
eventual hopelessness of the contest.

Surrounded on three sides by the water, on

the fourth it was connected with the land by a

long narrow causeway, across which had been

thrown a triple range of fortified gates to pro-

VOL. ii. Q

38 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

tect the castle in its only accessible approach.
All these were now heaps of rubbish, through
which Jocelyn and his companion rode unob-
structed, till they reached a small postern that
fronted the principal entrance, and formed the
present barrier to the mansion. No sooner had
Boss pulled the bell than the sound was follow-
ed by the loud baying of deep-mouthed dogs,
answered instantly by others in a remote part of
the building ; and immediately afterwards, a nar-
row gothic window over the inner gates being
opened, the head of a wild and haggard-looking
man was protruded. The glare of terror in
the eyes, the neglected beard waving in the
wind, the sallow cadaverous visage, all wore the
semblance of a maniac looking out from his place
of confinement, as he exclaimed in an angry and
agitated voice to Boss — " Villain and traitor !
how dare you bring a stranger to my lair ? Who
is he? what is he?"

" A countryman of your own," calmly re-

BltAMBLETYE HOUSE.

plied the party thus fiercely addressed, " and a
friend of Mr. Beverning, from whom he bears
you a letter."

" The worse welcome for being an English-
man," replied Mr. Strickland, for such was the
gaunt figure at the window, — " and is not one
man enough for a letter ? Advance a step further
at your peril ! the fire-arms are always loaded .
Give in your paper through the wicket." With
these words he- disappeared : Jocelyn handed
the letter through the wicket to a servant, whose
face he could not see ; and was then left for
some time to form his own conjectures, no
answer being returned from the castle.

" There is a house at a few pipes distance,
though we cannot see it," said Boss, " that will
furnish us with good schiedam, Spanish tobacco,
and forage for our horses, should we be denied
admittance here, which is not unlikely."

" After so long a journey," replied Jocelyn,
" nothing would be more vexatious than to be
kept out."

ft 2

340

-BRAMBLETVE HOUSE.

" Except being kept in," said Boss, leering
slily at the prison-like pile.

" In good sooth ! it presents no great external
attractions," continued our hero ; " but there
may be that within which passeth show, and
at all events, I shall be safe here from all un-
welcome visitants."

" Except damp air and cold water," drily re-
plied Boss, " and such occasional intruders as
wearisomeness, the marsh-fever* and death."

" Hold thy croaking tongue, thou Dutch
raven !" cried Jocelyn, becoming irate at this
ill-timed freedom, " or by all the dykes and

dams of Holland " The unbarring of the

postern, and the heavy rumbling of the gate as
it was thrown back for their admission, cutting
short the remainder of his speech, he entered
the small court-yard, followed by his companion,
and dismounted. Punchincello instantly trotted
off to the stable, or rather ruined shed, which
abutted upon one corner of the enclosure ; the
postern was again closed, barred, and bolted ;

BEAMBLETYE HOUSE. 341

*

and our hero, being cautioned to keep the mid-
dle of the court on account of the dogs, ad-
vanced towards the great door. It was well
that he had been put upon his guard against
the mastiffs secured to the wall on either side, for
they flew at him as if they would have broken
their chains, while their furious baying was again
echoed from others, who seemed to be keeping
guard at the opposite extremity, or Watergate
of the castle. Passing these fierce sentinels
uninjured, he reached the entrance, which was
not less carefully secured than the postern ; and
was at length ushered into the hall, a dark gloomy
Gothic chamber hung round with harquebusses,
pikes, match-locks, cross-bows, shields, swords,
and armour of antique construction, surmounted
with bare poles from which the banners had
long since rotted away, and the whole warlike
apparatus enveloped in one uniform shroud of
dark-coloured dust, that seemed to have ac-
cumulated in the silence and desertion of forgot-
ten ages.

flRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

From this gloomy vestibule he passed into an
apartment looking out through deeply-pierced
oriel windows, upon the desolate expanse of wa-
ters, whence the mists of evening were already
beginning to arise in impervious clouds that rol-
led heavily around the building, as if to wrap it
up in the winding-sheet of death. The room itself
was hung with faded moth-eaten arras whose de-
signs were no longer recognisable ; the massy an-
tique furniture was darkened by the breath of
time ; the dusty mirrors seemed about to follow
the mouldered beings whose faces they had re-
flected centuries before ; the chairs were in the
last stage of decrepitude ; every thing was su-
perannuated, neglected, forlorn. — " Who are
you ? what are you ? why do you come hither ? "
rapidly exclaimed the gaunt figure whom he had
seen at the window, as he suddenly stalked
into the room with a sword in his hand, and
stood upon his guard at a little distance from
Jocelyn.

" I thought that our mutual friend Mr.

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 343

Beverning had stated the cause of my involun-
tary intrusion upon your retreat," replied our
hero.

" He has merely mentioned that circumstances
impelled him to a measure which I must term a
most unwarrantable liberty," resumed Strickland.
" True, I am under obligations to him, heavy and
not forgotten obligations ; — but knowing as he
does the tremendous doom that would over-
whelm me, were I discovered — what ! after
being hunted by blood-hounds, like a wild beast,
chased from kingdom to kingdom, baited by the
curses and the cruelty of mankind, as if I were
another Cain, outlawed, excommunicated, and
driven to seek refuge in this desolate and pestife-
rous morass, am I to be denied the miserable
consolation of being alone — of not seeing a
single individual of the human race — the foul,
fickle, and treacherous beings that I abhor?
Once more, Sir, tell me, who are you ? what are
you ? why do you come hither?"

Jocelyn was proceeding to state his history as

344 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

concisely as possible; but he had no sooner decla-
red that he lately held a situation in the Court,
than his companion started back, grasped his
sword more firmly, and exclaimed — " Ha, Sir !
the Court ? — but I shall be prepared for you.
Proceed ! proceed !"

" And pray, Sir," he continued, when his vi-
sitant had finished his relation, " how am I to
know that your name is really Compton, or
that there is one single word of truth in your
assertions ?"

" This is language which I can brook from
no man,'1 cried our hero indignantly, " nor
shall you again question my veracity with im-
punity. You say that you are suffering unme-
rited persecutions and misfortunes; so am I:
and if a fellowship in calamity does not entitle
me to your hospitality, it shall not at least
expose me to insult."

"Tush! tush!" replied Strickland; "it is
no time to stand upon punctilio, when every

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 345

man's knife is at my throat. When you have
been exposed to as many plots for your destruc-
tion as I have ; when you have suffered as much
from baseness, ingratitude, and treachery, you will
not put trust in sugared words, nor place your
life in the power of every Judas that may greet
you with the kiss of friendship. Lookye, Sir ! I
do put a certain confidence in you : not in your
averments, for I have known stout swearers that
were double-faced as Janus, false as the Prince
of Darkness, — but in the assurances of Nature,
who has stamped honesty and honour on your
brow. Lest she too should attempt to cajole me
to my own betrayal, it is well that we should un-
derstand one another You are welcome to the
protection of this wretched haunt ; and, if you
are truly the victim of misfortune, as you assert,
it may reconcile you to your fate, to know that
you share it with one who is ten thousand times
more miserable than yourself, more heart-
stricken and hopeless, indeed, than any man
Q 5

346 BUAMBLETYE HOUSE.

that breathes. But the possibility that you
may be what you profess will not throw me off
my guard.'7

With these words he opened his cloak, and,
pointing to the pistols that were belted to his
doublet, continued — " Behold, Sir, what you
are to expect if you come to me as a spy, an
enemy, and a villain ! Nay, Sir, knit not your
brows in wrath, nor lay your hand upon your
sword. Those terms were only applied to him
who shall deserve them; and, merited or not, I
am unmoved by angry looks, and wear a sword
myself. From this trusty steel, from these
loaded weapons, I am never separated either by
day or by night. I have solemnly sworn never to
be taken alive ; and you will soon too well know
the value of an existence wasted in this hate-
ful fen, to doubt that I would cheerfully lay it
down in the fulfilment of my oath. And now,
Sir, that we comprehend one another, I am
ready to accompany you to the noble beings
who have sacrificed their own happiness in

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 347

endeavouring to alleviate my misery. God
knows, I wished them not to resign the world,
odious as it is, and share this joyless exile ; but
they persisted, because they were women, be-
cause they were of that sex, which has engrossed
all the virtues, leaving hollowness, heartless-
ness, cruelty, deceit, treachery, and every base-
ness, to that incarnate fiend — man. Now, Sir,
shall we join these brighter and redeeming spe-
cimens of humanity ?*'

" I am ready to follow you,11 replied Jocelyn,
bowing.

" I suffer no one to follow me,11 said Strick-
land, smiling in bitter spirit. " As I consider
every man my enemy, I like to keep my eyes
upon my foes. I would fall like Caesar, and
have my wounds in front. Daggers and assas-
sins come from behind. Nay, nay, Sir, once
more: — prythee, no splenetic reddening of the
cheek, nor choleric gesture of the hand ; for, if
there be offence in my words, it is not personal to
the individual, but general to the species. Bear

348 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

with my infirmity, if you come to share my
exile ; and heed not the growling of the bear,
since you Jiave dogged him to his den. I shall
not often put your patience to trial ; for,
though under the same roof, you will have
little of my society, and none of my confi-
dence. Walk on, Sir."

Discourteous as was the language of his host,
Jocelyn justly attributing it to the morbid state
of his mind, considered it rather a subject of
pity than resentment, and therefore obeyed in
silence a mandate conveyed in imperious terms,
which he would not have brooked from any
other. Receiving directions as to his course, he
ascended the spacious stairs, dim even in the
day-time from the sombre colour of the cedar
pannels, and now darkened by the gloom of
evening, and entered a small square apartment,
much more comfortable and cheerful than that
which he had just quitted. A fire, rendered ne-
cessary by the perpetual damps, was blazing in
the hearth, and there were lighted lamps upon

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 349

the table, at which, before an open bible, sup-
ported on a pile of other books, sate an elderly
female, whom he found to be the wife of his
host. Though somewhat advanced in years,
her physiognomy was striking, rather from its
lofty, and perhaps masculine, expression, than
from any comeliness of feature. In the mould-
ing of her capacious brow, in the calm steadfast
look of her eye, in the character of her com-
pressed lips, were to be traced energy, courage,
and firmness of purpose. She appeared to be se-
rious, though not melancholy ; offering in every
respect a contrast to her fearful, suspicious,
wild-looking, hypochondriacal husband.

" I will not say that I am glad to see you,"
she exclaimed to Jocelyn, " for nothing but dire
and deep misfortune could have brought you
hither ; but if this forlorn abode can give you
the security you seek, I shall rejoice in your
having chosen it, not less upon your own ac-
count than upon ourV

Jocelyn bowed as he observed, that if it had

350 BRAMULETYE HOUSE.

no other recommendation, it at least seemed ad-
mirably calculated for the purposes of conceal-
ment, though he feared it was little adapted for
a lady's residence.

" Every place has attractions to a wife that
is cheered by her husband's presence,1' replied
Mrs. Strickland.

The wild and restless eyes of the exile lost
for a moment their haggard character, as he
turned them affectionately upon his wife, ex-
claiming : " If female friendship and devoted-
ness could assuage my woes, I need not be
unhappy ; but, alas ! it gives acuteness to my
misery to think that I am most afflicting those
who love me the best. Our lively Julia, too ;
where is she f"

44 The dear wild girl was so rejoiced at the
idea of a visitor," replied Mrs. Strickland, " that
she declared she would consult her glass and her
toilet before she saw him, lest she should frighten
him away again. She will return immediately."
Her eyes dropped upon the Bible as she con-

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 351

eluded this speech ; her husband seated himself
opposite to his guest, and a pause ensued, dur-
ing which Jocelyn had leisure to contrast the
silent and sombre figures before him with those
wrought on the tapestry, which represented
Bacchus and Ariadne in joyous procession, pre-
ceded by satyrs and fauns sounding their crooked
shells, followed by dancing Bacchanals and
singing boys, and the rear occupied by a drun-
ken group, whose united exertions could hardly
keep Silenus upright upon his long- eared quad-
ruped. From this contemplation, and the re-
verie to which it was conducting him, he was
aroused by the sudden entrance of Miss Strick-
land, of whom he had so often heard Miss Be-
verning make mention as her beautiful friend
Julia.

To this praise, however, rigorous judges of
female charms might have denied her claim, by
availing themselves of the single exception to
which she was liable, her height being a trifle
under the prescribed standard of perfection. Of

352 BHAMBLETYE HOUSE.

a brilliant fair complexion, her eyes were hazel,
her locks a bright glossy brown. Her eyebrows,
which were of a much darker hue than was
warranted by the colour of her hair, generally
assumed that high peculiar arch which accom-
panies risible emotion, and appearing to sympa-
thise with the dimples in either cheek, which
were full of lurking laughter, imparted to her
countenance a singularly arch, joyous, and fas-
cinating character, without however injuring its
capacity for loftier or more serious expression.
Her mother's sedate looks brightened as she ap-
proached, and even the grim and ghastly wild-
ness of the exile was softened into an appearance
of complacency, as covering his overgrown beard
with his right hand, he gazed upon the cheerful
features, and listened to the sprightly tones of
his daughter. Jocelyn was the more delighted,
as he little expected to encounter vivacity of any
sort in an abode that seemed dedicated to me-
lancholy. Pleasure was heightened by surprise :
her appearance was like a sudden flash of sun-

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 353

shine irradiating the gloom of a prison-cell:
there was contagion in her smiling happiness,
and her animation was the more bewitching,
because it seemed perfectly spontaneous and
natural.

In a short time, however, the countenance of
her unhappy father again became overcast ; he
had apparently been communing in silence with
his own sad thoughts, for his eyes rolled with a
suspicious wildness ; and he was about to quit
the apartment without uttering a syllable, when
Julia, running up to him, exclaimed — "Nay, my
dear father ! you will not retire for the night
without hearing your favourite hymn. Here is
your arm-chair in your own fire-side corner;
the virginals are in good tune ; you must sit
down and let me sing to you : you have often
said it was consoling to hear me ; and I am sure
it is not less so to me when I am playing."

Having led her father to an arm-chair, she
hurried to place herself at the virginals. The
character of her countenance was now altered :

354 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

it was sobered into a serious and tender expres-
sion, which became gradually exalted into reli-
gious fervour as she sang the necessity of sub-
mission to the dispensations of Providence, the
charms and consolations of piety, the vanity of
all human enjoyments, the imperishable beati-
tudes of Heaven. The calm of resignation
again stole over the exile's ruffled features as
he listened to so sweet a voice, breathing the
words of peace to his wounded spirit. He rose
when she had concluded, kissed her fondly on
the forehead, and, putting his handkerchief to
his eyes, walked silently out of the room.

" Our dwelling is a hermitage, so far as
seclusion can render it such," said Mrs. Strick-
land— " and we keep the hermit's hours. Long
days are for the happy ; but for my poor hus-
band, sleep is the greatest of blessings, when he
can obtain it, because it brings forge tfulness.
We retire early, and we rise with the lark.
Mr. Strickland performs his devotions in his
own closet ; — the rest of our household will be

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 355

shortly summoned to prayers, after which we
shall be obliged to bid you good-night, and
leave you to withdraw to rest at your accus-
tomed hour."

Jocelyn declared that the fatigues of his
journey would make him gladly conform to
the family arrangements in this respect; and
accordingly, after prayers had been read to the
assembled household, he bade his hostess and
her fascinating daughter good-night, and was
shown to his apartment. It assimilated with
those he had already seen : the hangings were
of faded arras, the furniture exhibited the for-
lornness of departed grandeur, and the bed, of
danske worked with flowers of gold and silver
thread, had its canopy surmounted with a plume
of feathers, which shook down the dust of many
years1 accumulation as he stretched himself be-
neath them. For some time he was unable to
sleep. The lone desolation of his abode in the
very midst of the watery wilderness, the wild,
terrified, and woe- worn looks of his host, con-

356 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

jectures as to the crimes or misfortunes, which
had thus occasioned him to be excommunicated
by his species, reverence for his devoted wife,
and an unbounded admiration of the vivacious
and bewitching Julia, occupied his thoughts in
succession, until the weariness of his body at
length subdued the activity of his mind, and he
sank into a profound sleep.

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 357

CHAPTER IX.

True it is, we have seen better days,
And have with holy bell been knoll'd to church,
And sat at good men's feasts, and wip'd our eyes
Of drops that sacred pity hath engender' d :
And therefore sit you down in gentleness,
And take upon command what help we have,
That to your wanting may be minister'd.

SHAKSPEARJ;.

THE sun had not yet broken through the
dense vapours that every night enshrouded the
water -girt castle of Haelbeck, when Jocelyn
was awakened by a faint wailing cry, followed
by the plashing of some substance in the waves
below. At first he imagined that a dream, en-
gendered by the melancholy change of his re-
sidence, had deceived his senses ; for although
Winky Boss had most gravely assured him that

358 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

the castle was haunted, he was little disposed at
any time to superstitious fears, and had too
good an opinion of ghostly taste to believe that
any of the tribe would take up their abode
in that aguish swamp, when they could obtain
so much better quarters upon dry land. The
sounds, however, being distinctly repeated, he
arose and opened the window, when something
again fell plashing in the water beneath ; and
looking up, he beheld the stork scratching and
loosening the mortar on the top of a ruined
tower immediately above him. At the noise he
made, the solitary bird, again uttering a plaintive
cry, flew off, and it was soon lost in the watery
exhalations, although the flapping of its wings
was heard long after it was out of sight. Not
feeling any further disposition to sleep, he
dressed himself, and descended into the apart-
ment where prayers had been read the night
before. The Bible remained on the table ; and
having the curiosity to examine the books beside
it, he found them to be the controversial and

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 359

political works of Milton, in Latin, with copious
marginal annotations in a female handwriting,
which he subsequently ascertained to be that of
Mrs. Strickland.

He had been for some time engaged in look-
ing over one of the volumes, when the door
opened and Julia entered.

" You have understood us literally indeed,"
she exclaimed, with a winning smile. " When
we told you that we kept the hours of the
anchorite, we meant not to impose upon you
such matin vigils.1'

" To me they are no penance,"" replied Jo-
celyn, " for I have been accustomed to rise with
the sun.1'

" You must depart from that custom here,'1
replied Julia, " or you will be a sluggard in-
deed ; for the god of day forfeits his name in
this paradise of the frogs ; being often so com-
pletely lost in the mist, as to be unable to find
his way to Haelbeck till the afternoon.11

Jocelyn explained the circumstance that

360

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

had disturbed him, and occasioned his early
rising.

" I warn you beforehand," resumed Julia,
" not to be alarmed at any strange noises you
may hear in the night-time, for the old castle
seems sometimes to be bemoaning its own crazy
state, and sends forth groans at midnight that
attest a deeper feeling than you would expect
from its heart of stone. Besides," she con-
tinued, with a more serious air, " my poor
father occasionally wanders about it all night
long,— a circumstance which it grieves me to
state, but of which it is right that you should
be apprised. But how comes it that neither
you nor your servant brought me any letter
from my dear Constantia ?"

" The suddenness of my departure rendered
it impossible," replied our hero ; " but she spe-
cially charged me with all kind and cordial
remembrances, and never mentioned her friend
at Haelbeck but with expressions of the ten-
derest attachment."

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 861

" I am proud that she considers me worthy
of her friendship," said Julia. " Is she not a
good, a noble, a fascinating creature ?"

" Perhaps too noble, too exalted, or at all
events, too serious and enthusiastic," replied
Jocelyn, " to meet my notions of a fascinating
creature."

" And I shall be, 'of course, as much too
giddy and volatile to please you," cried Julia,
" as my friend is too sedate and contemplative.
You must have a creature made on purpose
for you ; one that shall unite the gravity of
Melpomene to the playfulness of Thalia ; a
tragi-comic monster of conflicting excellencies.
You will have much more reason to wonder at
my sprightliness, perhaps I should say my
levity, than at Constantia's staid and grave de-
portment. I will not assert with the giddy girl
in the play, that ' I could as soon be immortal
as be serious:/ but I am blessed with con-
stitutional high spirits ; and you will please to
recollect, that I have to enact all the cheer-

VOL. II. R

BRAMBLETYF, HOUSE.

fulness that is to be performed in the dolorous
castle of Haelbeck."

" Which certainly requires an abundant
supply of that moral sunshine to dissipate its
gloom," observed Jocelyn.

*' I am vain enough to believe," resumed
Julia, " that my silly gaiety sometimes for-
tifies my mother's courage, and cheers the deep
despondency of my father ; and as to the dis-
malness of this swampy prison, it affects not
me. There is a Spanish proverb which says,
' Heaven sends the cold according to the
clothes ;' and the same benignant Providence,
providing for the comfort of the mind as well
as of the body5 seems to dispense cheerfulness
according to the urgency of the need. The
bird sings loudest in a cage, the negro dances
with unbounded glee in the midst of his ser-
vitude, the galley-slave serenades the oar to
which he is chained, and the giddy-pated Julia
Strickland plays the part of Democritus in
petticoats, in the very abode which would have

BllAMBLETYE HOUSE. 368

been chosen for its melancholy by the weeping
philosopher of Ephesus. Oh, how I would cry
if a tear could get one out ! but since it cannot,
I am determined to defeat the malice of For-
tune, by returning her a smile for every frown
she flings at me."

" Your's is, indeed, the pleasantest and truest
philosophy,1' said Jocelyn ; " but it is not on
that account the less difficult to practise."

" Difficult r cried Julia — " in what respect ?
Happiness comes not from without, but from
within : it is but to borrow a little from imagi-
nation, and we may metamorphose ill-omened
owls, frogs, and bats, into pleasant ladies and
gentlemen, with as much ease as Ovid reversed
the process; and thus provide ourselves with
pleasant associations instead of those that are
revolting. A touch of Fancy's wand converts
' the green 'man tie of the standing pooP into
a verdant lawn embroidered with lilies in-
stead of daisies; osiers and alders supply me
with arbutus and myrtle ; every floundering

364 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

carp is a sporting lamb or crooked dolphin,
according to the taste of the moment ; the
floating mists are the white sails of the gallant
pleasure-boats that skim the surface of yonder
lake. I have a fine old castle ready made to
my hands ; the stork is my warder, perched
in the western watch-tower ; and as to a
Knight-errant, there is Sir Will-o'-the-wisp,
known afar off by the gleaming of his armour,
who seizes a bull-rush for a lance, a water-flag
for his pennon, and hies to my bower every
evening to serenade me with a concert of frogs
and owls. See how soon I have transformed
Haelbeck into the gardens of Hesperus, and
converted myself into a heroine of romance !"
" I thought none but the bee could gather
honey from bitter flowers, and turn the poi-
sonous to the palatable," said Jocelyn, " but
I find I was mistaken. Your power of en-
chantment is doubly valuable, since it not only
secures your own happiness, but that of every
one who comes within your sphere. While

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 365

you can take such pleasant excursions with the
imagination, you need the less regret that they
are denied you from the water-bound walls of
Haelbeck."

" I pray you, Sir, disparage not thus our
pleasant bower !" exclaimed Julia. " Is there
not the narrow causeway, where you may di-
versify your walk by turning back when you
are tired of going out ; sure of a pleasant pro-
menade, so long as you fall not over the rub-
bish with which it is encumbered, and slip not
into the slime that hems it in on either side ?
Is there not, moreover, an old boat belonging
to the castle, that is hardly crazy and leaky
enough to be in character; and an ancient
Netherlander, who will ferry you from one bed
of weeds to another, till, in very wearisomeness
of stagnant water, you will wish the wave were
Lethe, or your boatman Charon ? unless you
are too fastidious to be pleased with anything,
what would you more ?"

Our hero was about to reply to this sally,

3C6

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

when the entrance of Mrs. Strickland, and the
preparations for breakfast, gave a different turn
to the conversation. The latter politely re-
gretted their inability to afford him any amuse-
ment at Haelbeck, (a declaration of which he did
not acknowledge the truth, so long as he could
enjoy the society of Julia,) but added, that such
books as the castle afforded, of which only a few
were French, the rest being in Spanish, had been
ordered to be conveyed to his apartment. Mr.
Strickland did not appear; indeed he very
seldom afterwards presented himself, even at
meals ; and when he did, his melancholy, silence,
and reserve sufficiently confirmed his declara-
tion, that his visitor would have little of his
society, and none of his confidence. When
breakfast was concluded, the ladies withdrew,
and Jocelyn proceeded to examine his books,
more and more smitten by the vivacious Julia,
and instituting comparisons between her and
Constantia, as companions for enlivening the
path of life, that placed the former in the

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 367

most captivating point of view, and threw the
latter to an immeasurable distance in the back-
ground.

Under the circumstances in which our hero
was now placed, it will hardly be expected
that many incidents could occur to vary that
monotony of life, which was common to all the
inhabitants of Haelbeck. It was enough for
him that it contained Julia, and he daily con-
gratulated himself upon that caprice of Fate
which, threatening him in the first instance
with an exile of the gloomiest and most revolt-
ing nature, had unexpectedly opened a paradise
in the wild, and turned his banishment into a
blessing, by surrounding him with all the fas-
cinations of unrivalled beauty and vivacity.

One night, after the rest of the family had
retired to rest at their usual earl}'- hour, he
took up Madame de Scuderi's romance of
Clelie, which had been given to Julia by her
friend Constantia. Remembering the enthu-
siastic terms in which the latter had spoken

368 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

of this production, and anxious to know some-
thing of a work which was then eagerly de-
voured by the most civilized nations of Europe,
he continued turning over its multitudinous
pages and skimming their contents, little in-
terested in such extravagant exaggerations of
an embellished humanity, and yet desirous of
knowing to what fantastical conclusion they
would lead, until the hour of midnight was at
hand. There was no clock at Haelbeck, how-
ever grateful it might have been to some of
its inmates to be told, from time to time, that
they were an hour nearer to their final eman-
cipation. The crane was at rest in his western
tower ; the owls had given over their melancholy
hooting ; the frogs had croaked themselves to
sleep ; and even the watch-dogs, whose deep-
mouthed baying was generally the last to cease,
had yielded up the castle to the custody of
fogs and silence. Surprised at the lateness of
the hour, when he inspected his watch, he

BEAMBLETYE HOUSE. 369

closed the ponderous tome, and ascended the
stairs for the purpose of retiring to bed.

Just as he had reached the entrance of his
apartment, he was startled by the sound of foot-
steps at the further extremity of the corridor ;
and it is difficult to express his feelings of
amazement, not unmixed with alarm, when he
saw his unfortunate host stealing along the pas-»
sage with a drawn sword in one hand, and a
lighted lamp in the other; while Mrs. Strick-
land, who followed close behind him with agi-
tated looks, and who had already recognized
Jocelyn, motioned to him to withdraw, and im-
mediately after laid her finger upon her lips to
enjoin silence. Partly complying with this in-
timation, he retired withinside the door ; but an
irresistible impulse of curiosity induced him to
leave it ajar, that he might behold the fearful
spectacle that was approaching him.

The wretched mind-shattered exile was walk-
ing in his sleep, apparently labouring under
R 5

370 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

some horrible and agonizing delusion. The
ghastly glare thrown by the lamp upon his ca-
daverous features and grisly beard ; the glit-
tering of his drawn sword and of the pistols in
his belt (for he was without his cloak) ; his
teeth clenched, and his hair standing on end
with horror ; the wild desperation of his fixed,
unwinking eye ; his stealthy pace, and the me-
nacing shake of the weapon as he clutched it
with convulsive twitches ; combined to render
the figure as hideous and appalling an apparition
as ever was presented to the human eye. He
passed in silence; and as Mrs. Strickland reached
the door, she exclaimed in a hasty whisper to
Jocelyn, " The fit is on him : my poor husband
imagines himself to be pursuing the phantom
that haunts his dreams : he is asleep; but if you
ever encounter him in these moods, for the love
of Heaven ! notice him not ; or his desperation,
if suddenly awakened, might be fatal to you.
He will perform the round of the castle and
return to his bed. Mention not what you

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 371

have seen to any soul that breathes, and least
of all to Julia."

With these words she passed on ; and Jocelyn,
eagerly gazing after her, saw the spectre-haunted
sleep-walker turn out of the passage at its fur-
ther extremity, followed by his affectionate wife,
who was accustomed to his infirmities, and both
by day and night seemed to watch over him like
his guardian angel. The corridor was now again
involved in silence and darkness, and Jocelyn
at length retired to bed, although the frightful
spectacle he had just witnessed, and a thousand
conjectures as to the cause of such a lamentable
state of mind in the unfortunate exile, not only
prevented his sleeping for some time, but sub-
sequently disturbed his slumbers by the most
terrific dreams and all the revolting phantas-
magoria of the night-mare.

At breakfast the next morning Mrs. Strick-
land exhibited her usual firmness and self-pos-
session, taking no notice whatever of the last
night's occurrence, and conducting herself in

872 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

every respect as if nothing had happened.
Upon this, as upon several other occasions,
Jocelyn was led to admire the calm fortitude of
her character, which rose in his estimation when
he considered the privations to which she was
exposed, and that the husband, who might have
cheered her solitude, only saddened the gloom
of the day by his hypochondriacal melancholy,
and gave horror to the night by labouring
under delusions that almost amounted to insa-
nity. Nothing but a lofty principle could have
enabled this high-minded being to wage such an
undaunted battle with Fate. As a woman, in-
deed, she deeply felt the severity of her trial ;
but she flinched not from her duty, however
painful it might be, as a wife ; and, above all,
she was resigned to her lot, whatever it might
prove, as a Christian.

Julia's constitutional gaiety, exalted into
something of a pious sentiment by her firm con-
viction that " cheerfulness is the best hymn to
the Divinity," was exposed to less severity of

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 375

trial ; for both her parents, fearful of lowering
the delightful buoyancy of spirit that formed
their dearest solace, carefully concealed from
her, as far as they could, whatever might give
her pain. She knew, indeed, their sad and fear-
ful history; that her father was oppressed by
habitual melancholy ; that in some of his sleep-
less nights he occasionally wandered about the
house : but of the darker visitations to which
he was subject, and of the imminent plots and
perils that environed him, she remained ig-
norant. Whenever these distressing moods
threatened to unhinge his mind, her mother im-
mediately removed him to his own apartment :
and this was the reason why Jocelyn saw so
little of his ill-fated host at the period of which
we are writing.

Of Julia, however, he necessarily saw more,
as the time of Mrs. Strickland became more
completely usurped by her unfailing attentions
to her husband. He had now frequent oppor-
tunities of accompanying her as she played

374 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

upon the virginals, a recreation to which they
both became passionately attached at the same
moment, attributing to their love of music that
pleasure which was probably derived from their
love of one another, quite as much as from any
combinations of harmonious sound. Sometimes
the old Netherland boatman, whose likeness to
Charon was so striking, that Julia declared it
made her involuntarily put her hand in her
pocket for an obolus, rowed them to some little
distance, where they either tried the effect of
their voices on the water, or Julia sketched the
castle, with some grotesque accompaniment, or
satirical touch at herself and Jocelyn, or Winky
Boss and the old crane, not forgetting the owls
and frogs ; and thus converted the whole scene
into a ludicrous caricature. Exhilarated by the
break in her solitude which Jocelyn's visit occa-
sioned, her vivacity became more brilliant and
mercurial than ever. Her head and heart sym-
pathised faithfully together, the wit sparkling
as the bosom became lighted up with joy. Our

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 375

hero was delighted, fascinated, entranced : Julia
was not less struck by the many qualifications
of her companion : in short, they were falling
in love with one another as fast as they possibly
could, without either of them having considered
the expediency of that measure, or the proba-
bility that it could lead to any satisfactory con-
clusion, under the circumstances in which they
were mutually placed.

Thus affairs continued for some time, when
our hero, being one day led by curiosity to
explore the recesses of the castle, was struck
by the appearance of an ancient figure wrought
in the tapestry at the termination of a narrow
passage. It represented some Spanish warrior,
probably the Cid; for there were numerous
crosses on his arms, and he was trampling upon
the Moorish insignia. One of the upper corners
having fallen away from the frame that sup-
ported it, Jocelyn endeavoured to replace it,
and was pressing for that purpose upon the
brass nail or button to which it appeared to

376 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

have been originally fixed5 when it acted as a
spring, and the whole frame started back six or
eight inches. Pushing it further open, he found
that the passage continued on the other side ;
the piece of tapestry being in fact a secret door,
contrived for some purpose of concealment, or
of communication with other parts of the build-
ing. No one, perhaps, ever hesitated about
prosecuting an unexpected discovery of this
sort, unless deterred by fear; and as Jocelyn
was a stranger to that feeling, he set about the
completion of his enterprize with all the ardour
of curiosity. By leaving open the tapestry-
door, sufficient light was admitted into the
passage to guide him for some way ; and at a
considerable distance he beheld another thin
stream of light, appearing to proceed from some
narrow aperture.

Immediately directing his steps to this point,
he found that the ray was admitted through a
hole in the tapestry, behind which he was stand-
ing ; the opening being sufficiently large to give

BEAMBLETYE HOUSE. 377

him a complete view of the apartment within,
and yet not capacious enough to expose him to
discovery from any persons who might be in it.
At this moment it was untenanted, although it
bore marks of recent occupancy. Its appear-
ance was not very dissimilar from that forlorn
chamber into which he had first been ushered
upon his arrival, save that there was a painting
in good preservation affixed to the wall over the
fire-place. It represented the murder of some
unfortunate personage, whose rich dress attested
his elevated station, and who was seen in the act
of falling from his horse ; while his assassin was
walking calmly away, holding up his bloody
dagger in order that an angel descending from
the sky might drop a wreath upon its point,
and at the same time deposit another upon the
bearer's head. Jocelyn was endeavouring to
discover the subject of this painting, when the
door of the apartment opened, and the exile
slowly entered, holding, as usual, his sword in
his hand. His involuntary observer would

378 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

have instantly withdrawn, but remembering the
caution he had received from Mrs. Strickland,
and aware that he could not retire without
making a noise, which might irritate the terrors
of his host, and perhaps goad his morbidly
sensitive mind to some act of madness, he
thought it better to remain perfectly motionless
and silent.

Thus compelled to act the spy, he observed
that the unfortunate man was not now under
the influence of disturbed sleep, nor apparently
so much agitated as usual. His appearance,
however, was still wild and haggard ; and though
the motions of his body were calm and slow,
the compression of his lips, and the peculiar
expression of his eye, showed that there was
desperation in his mind. His right hand was
muffled up in a handkerchief, as if it had been
recently wounded. After having deposited his
sword upon the table, and his pistols by its side,
he took from a drawer a case of surgical instru-
ments, opened it, drew out a knife and a saw,

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 379

which he placed by the side of the weapons,
and for some seconds contemplated the whole
apparatus of death, with such a look of grim and
yet triumphant despair, that Jocelyn concluded
he had resolved upon committing suicide, and
that he felt a horrible satisfaction in having
provided such a choice of means. All minor
apprehensions being merged in this imminent
and paramount danger, he was about to burst
through the tapestry, and rush to arrest his
fatal purpose, when he was again rivetted to
the spot on which he stood, by the sudden ap-
pearance of Mrs. Strickland.

" You are come in good time," exclaimed the
exile in a calm voice, as he seated himself in
a chair. — " I was waiting for you : I am ready:
the deed must be done now. It visited me
again last night."

" What visited you ?" inquired his wife.

" He!" cried the exile in a fierce tone, " he!
the spectre — the phantom — the man that is
dead and buried— the apparition that haunts me

380 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

in the darkness ! He whom I have chased
night after night with my sword, but who still
returns to madden me with his hideous ghast-
liness."

" Strange that this fearful dream should
thus often be repeated !" exclaimed his wife
with a deep sigh.

" Dream I" cried the exile, smiling in bitter-
ness of spirit — " it was no dream, and if it were,
may not such night-visions be prophetic and
from the Lord? was it not thus that he revealed
his will to Abimelech, and Jacob, and Laban,
and Joseph ; although he refused thus to answer
Saul before the battle of Gilboa ? Did not
Pharaoh and Nebuchadnezzar — " Here he sud-
denly broke off and started up, rivetted his eyes
to the wall, and, moving them slowly as if fol-
lowing some object to the door, exclaimed in an
agitated whisper — " There it was again ! —
there ! there ! did you not see it ?"

" See what ? my dear husband !" inquired
Mrs. Strickland ; " there is nothing.1'

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 381

" It has again glided out of the door and es-
caped me," replied the exile, replacing upon the
table the sword which he had suddenly grasped.
Passing his hand slowly over his eyes, which he
repeatedly shut and opened, as if to collect his
faculties, he proceeded in a more composed
tone—" I believe I am somewhat over-worn with
sleeplessness — I felt a little dizzy, but it is gone.
We will proceed to our dreadful task. There
is no one, I hope, in this quarter of the castle ? "

" Not a soul," replied his wife — " it is never
visited."

" Hist! hist ! did I not hear a noise ? — surely
the arras moved."

" These tattered hangings are often agitated
by the wind that gets behind them," replied his
wife. " Compose yourself, my dear husband !
no breathing being can be near us."

" Perhaps so, for the phantom cannot breathe,"
exclaimed the exile — " we will make all sure,"
He locked the door, and, returning to his wife,
continued in an earnest and eager whisper —

382 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

" Last night, as I told you, I was awakened
from deep sleep by the noise of undrawing my
bed-curtains, and starting up I beheld the grisly
apparition that for- ever haunts me. The livid
ghastliness of death was upon his features; his
eyes were sunk down in their sockets ; his beard
was clotted with gore; and as I stretched out my
arm to grasp my sword, a sepulchral voice ex-
claimed— ' By that right hand was I consigned
to death !' — At these words the spectre pointed
to his wound, where the mark of the weapon was
still red and angry, and there issued from the
gash a thin stream of blood, which, spouting
towards me, fell upon my right hand ; instantly
after which the figure became invisible. On
arising this morning I observed that the accursed
stain was still branded on my flesh, stamped in
to so indelible a depth that the stubborn crim-
son has resisted all my exertions to wash or tear
it away. You have doubted of this nightly vi-
sitant, you have termed it a dream, a delusion,

BRAMBLKTYE HOUSE. 883

— now then behold the visible, the unanswerable,
the red, the damning proof of what I have
asserted !"

So saying, he untied the handkerchief in
which his hand was wrapped, unbuttoned the
sleeve of his doublet, turned back the shirt of
mail which he always wore next his skin, and
pointing to the back of his hand, exclaimed >
66 Behold ! there is the sanguine stigma, run-
ning up the wrist, even to my arm." Tinder
the influence of his delusion, he had been vio-
lently rubbing this particular part, until he had
produced a redness of the skin, which confirmed
him in his hallucination. " Now," he continued,
with a desperate calmness, " prove yourself to
be still the devoted wife I have ever found you.
Were it not my right-hand, myself would do it !
Here are surgical instruments, a knife for the
flesh, and a saw for the bone; cut then boldly,
and fear not. Away with this blood-spilth !
Off with this spotted flesh ! Hack out the root

384 BEAMBLETYE HOUSE.

of this filthy gore ; and if the bone itself be
stained, break it, saw through it, amputate the
whole arm. Be not afraid, I will not flinch,
nor utter a single groan. I can bear pain, tor-
ture, agony; but I will not be branded with
the badge of Cain ! "

Distressed as she evidently was, his unfortu-
nate wife did not lose her presence of mind in
this embarrassing dilemma. Seeing that he was
too fully possessed with his delusion to listen to
any arguments of reason, and knowing, by ex-
perience, that it did but irritate him in these
moods to doubt the reality of his impressions,
she attempted not to disabuse him of his phan-
tasma, but lent herself for the moment to the
alienation of his mind. Minutely examining
the supposed stain upon the hand, she express-
ed her fears that she should be obliged to cut
deep, though there could be no doubt of its
ultimate eradication, felt his pulse, declared that
he ought to be refreshed by sleep before the
operation could be safely performed, and re-

BEAMBLETYE HOUSE. 385

minding him that she had come unprepared with
bandages, finally proposed that every thing
should be adjourned till the morrow.

" To-morrow be it !" cried her husband,
again covering up his hand, " a few hours
deeper misery can make little difference in one
so habituated to wretchedness as I am. It is
at least a consolation to have ascertained the
unflinching affection of my wife; and a still
greater to have proved to her the reality of that
night-phantom, whose visitations she has so
perseveringly doubted."

Soothed with this notion, and gratified by
the new proof his wife had afforded of her de-
votedness, he conversed for some time, in a
mood so calm, collected, and almost cheerful,
that the affectionate woman exclaimed, " Oh !
Valentine Walton ! Valentine Walton ! would
that I could see your once-noble mind as it
now is, if it cannot be altogether restored to its
former courage."

" Who says I am Valentine Walton ?" cried

VOL. II. S

386 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

the exile, looking around with returning terror —
" there is death and doom in that excommu-
nicated name. Hah ! was it you, my faithful
wife ? forgive me — forgive me !" He held out
his hand to her with an affectionate look, and,
seeming to recover his self-possession as he
pressed the hand of his wife, he continued in a
calmer tone : — " Why do you recall to me
what I was; how wide the sway I once pos-
sessed ; how uniformly, how ardently I exercised
my extensive power for the happiness of my
fellow-creatures ; how basely, how foully the
villain, man, has requited me ? Never mention
to me my name, now hated by myself as much
as it is by others. Never remind me that he
who was once a philanthropist, has now too much
reason to be a misanthrope. Never tell me how
high I once stood, unless you can conceal from
me how low I am now fallen !"

" And am not I too fallen ?" exclaimed his
wife with a calm dignity. " I, the sister of the
greatest sovereign that ever sat upon a throne !

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 387

I, that might once have claimed influence over
a mighty kingdom ! I, that am now the pro-
scribed refugee, who must hide her head in the
watery dungeons of Haelbeck ? Yet you have
never heard me repine, for I share the mis-
fortunes of my husband. You have never seen
me yield to despondency ; for I still possess
undiminished sway over the kingdom of my
mind ! The good that we have both done in
our days of power cannot be taken from us. If
unrequited upon earth, it remains registered in
Heaven. So fickle a breath as public opinion
cannot constitute the virtue or vice of our
actions."

" But it may make the happiness or misery
of the actor," replied her husband with a groan ;
" especially, if like me, it has been the passion
of his soul to purchase fair fame, and golden
opinions from all men ; especially, if like me, he
can find no respite even in misanthropy, and
is rendered unceasingly wretched by having
forfeited the good opinion even of the beings

388 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

that he hates. Look at yonder picture,11 he
continued, pointing to the representation over
the fire-place. " Oh blind, fickle, brainless,
brutal race of man ! See how that base assassin
was honoured, rewarded, canonised; while I

for what am I reserved ? — an ignominious

scaffold will close my life ; curses and contempt
will be my posthumous honours !"

" Nay, yield not to these gloomy reveries,1'
cried his wife; " here we are safe and for-
gotten ; here will we tender consolation to one
another ; here will we close our weary pilgrimage
together.'1

" It may not be," sorrowfully resumed the
exile. " The last letters from our excellent
friend Beverning have filled me with new appre-
hensions. The great ones of the earth are con-
spiring together against me ; there are frequent
meetings of the ambassadors ; the Spaniard is
about to league with England. I must again
fly from my lonely lair ; or encounter the new
stratagems and plots, the new snares and pit-

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

falls, that will be remorselessly laid for my
life."

" We may defeat them again, as we have
done before ;" replied his wife. " When ne-
cessary, we have the means of flight ; till then
let us discard the world and its hostilities from
our thoughts. Resume your wonted courage,
my dear husband, and remember that it is not
danger that is terrible, but the perpetual fear of
it. Come, shall we join our dear Julia ?"

" Willingly," exclaimed the exile with a lan-
guid smile. " God knows I have need of
something to cheer me. Where is she ? Where
is she ?" — A transient animation passed over his
wild and haggard features, as the wretched man
put his arm within his wife's, and was led out of
the room to seek his daughter.

As Jocelyn retired from the scene of which
he had so unintentionally been rendered a spec-
tator, he was not only perplexed with a thousand
vain conjectures as to who and what these mys-
.terious exiles could be, but he was a prey to

390 BEAMBLETYE HOUSE.

contending feelings of the most painful nature.
Sympathy with the sufferers, and this he felt in
no common degree, could not blind him to the
horrible nature of the crime which appeared to
have reduced the wretched exile to his present
deplorable state. Here was a man concealing
himself, under a feigned name, and in an un-
inhabited morass, who had virtually confessed
himself to be a murderer — and a murderer too
under such aggravations of atrocity that he was
not only placed under ban and interdict, and
driven out from all society with man, but
haunted by the horrible creations of his own
guilty conscience. He had himself alluded to
the probability of his finishing his miserable
career upon a public scaffold. His wife might
be a pattern of exalted virtue, she might have
truly boasted her relationship to a sovereign;
but no merit, no high connection, could wash
away the deep and deadly guilt of her husband,
or remove the infamy that attached to it. How-
ever illustrious might have been their former

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 391

rank, it was evident that the world considered
it no diminution of the exiled offence ; or they
would not both be pursued through various
countries with an unrelenting rancour, that was
only visited upon criminals of the blackest die.

Then came the most distressing question of
all. Could he marry the daughter of people so
circumstanced ? Hitherto he had been content
to admire to gratify his taste, to fall in love
without ever thinking of marriage. It was only
when that consummation presented itself to him
as impossible, that he began to discover how
fervently he desired it ; how necessary it was to
his happiness. Julia was doubtless as innocent
as she was fascinating, and he could not place
her purity in a more exalted point of view ; but
she was the daughter of a murderer, who might
be consigned to public execration and infamy on
the gibbet ; she was a wanderer upon the face
of the earth; she was living under a feigned
name ; she might have other relations who were
as objectionable as her father.

ERAMBLETYE HOUSE.

Day after day did he revolve these consider-
ations in his own mind, and they invariably con-
ducted him to the same result — the necessity of
renouncing his thoughtless attachment. Vigor-
ous and sage were his resolutions to this effect,
for his judgment was fully convinced; but his
heart, unfortunately, was no party to the pru-
dential dictates of his head. When he again
saw the bewitching Julia and listened to her
vivacious sallies ; when he considered her forlorn
and joyless lot, and weighed the injustice and
cruelty of visiting the crime of the guilty upon
the innocent ; when, above all, he found reason
to believe that he had awakened a tender interest
in her heart ; all the impediments to their union
vanished from his view, and he could hardly
avoid declaring his passion at once, and offering
to share her fate, whatever it might prove.

While love was thus struggling with pru-
dence, he received, after a long interval of
silence, a letter from Tracy, whose contents were

BEAMBLETYE HOUSE. 393

highly gratifying. Bagot, to the surprise of his
own surgeons, had recovered, and his health was
so completely re-established that he was upon
the point of setting out as secretary to the
Swedish embassy. The Duke of Buckingham,
having laid a wager that he would die, had
quarrelled with him for getting well ; and had
even been heard to express a hope that young
Compton would perform his work more effec-
tually the next time they encountered ; so that
there was no longer any apprehension of animo-
sity in that quarter. Lord Rochester had been
released from the Tower, had married Mistress
Mallett, in whose abduction Jocelyn had been
an unwitting assistant, was in greater favour
than ever with the King, and was exerting his
influence with Lady Castlemaine to procure a
pardon for Jocelyn. These friendly offices were
cordially seconded by the young Duke of Mon-
mouth, whose influence was almost omnipotent,
and by the Queen, as far as her more circum-

394 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

scribed means of promoting his interest allowed
her to interfere : — so that his correspondent ex-
pressed a firm conviction that his pardon would
shortly be pronounced in form, and concluded
with recommending his immediate return to
England, if he still entertained the idea of push-
ing his fortunes at Court.

This concluding recommendation our hero
determined instantly to adopt, for the fortunes
of his father were involved in his own ; and, if
he were disposed to neglect the one for the
indulgence of an ill-starred passion, he felt
that he had no right to compromise the other.
And yet he shrank from the idea of renouncing
Julia, unless he could prove beyond a doubt
that her father's predicament rendered the
prosecution of his passion utterly impractica-
ble. At times he was disposed to flatter him-
self that the morbid exile, in the distempera-
ture of his brain, might have exaggerated his
own delinquency ; a surmise that could be only

BB.AMBLETYE HOUSE. 395

refuted or confirmed by a knowledge of his real
history, so far as it was connected with his
present banishment. To obtain this information,
he determined upon sounding Julia, giving
. her reason to apprehend that his decision, as to
his remaining or not at Haelbeck, might be
influenced by the statement he should receive.

While he was again looking over his letter,
after having settled this little plan in his own
mind, Julia hastened up to him, exclaiming,
with her usual vivacity —

" I give you joy," Mr. Compton, " I give
you joy."

" Of what ?" inquired our hero.

" Of a letter," resumed Julia — " of some-
thing that liberates your mind from the dolo-
rous prison of Haelbeck, that carries your
thoughts over these dreary battlements far
away into the gay world, and among the haunts
of men,— of something that proves you are
not cut off from your species, but still possess

396 BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

friends, however distant, who can stretch out
their minds to you, and embrace you by their
hand-writing."

" So far it is doubtless pleasant," replied
Jocelyn, " but I have friends who are nearer
and dearer to me than those at a distance, and
from whom this letter may summon me sud-
denly away."

" Indeed !" exclaimed Julia, starting, while
her face and neck were suffused with a deep
blush — " are you going to quit us ? then may
I truly give you joy of your emancipation."

" I fear there may be a liberty without joy,"
answered Jocelyn; " and my residence here has
proved that there may be an imprisonment with-
out regret, so long, at least, as it is shared with
one whom 1 wish not to receive congra-
tulations, and especially from you, upon an
event that may separate us for ever."

" I felicitated you, not myself," said Julia,
casting her eyes upon the ground ; " your de-

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE. 397

parture will, indeed, deepen the gloom of Hael-
beck, and render doubly necessary tjiat deter-
mined elasticity of mind, which in men would
be termed philosophy, but which in us poor
women must be content to bear the name of
animal spirits, giddiness, levity, want of feel-
ing,— any thing, in short, but good sense."

" Will you acquit me of idle curiosity ," con-
tinued Jocelyn, " and do me the justice to be-
lieve that I have important reasons for the
question, if I ask when your own captivity is
likely to be terminated."

" Idle curiosity is, of course, limited to our
sex, with all other frivolous propensities,1' re-
plied Julia, " or I should ask you why you
put the question.'"

" Believe me, Miss Strickland, that I am
actuated by motives in which our mutual hap-
piness may be deeply implicated.11

et Why then, believe me, Mr. Compton,
that I know no more of the matter than the

VOL. II. T

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE.

gentleman to whom I must refer you for an an-
swer— videlicet — the Man in the Moon."

" Excuse the remark," resumed Jocelyn,
" and attribute it to the same weighty consi-
derations, if I implore you to be serious, and
take the liberty of observing that you must at
least know the circumstances that have driven
Mr. Strickland to this place of banishment."

" I do, Sir," replied Julia, with a reserved
air, " and my lips will for ever remain closed
upon a subject that is too awful, too harrowing, to
be even adverted to without feelings of anguish
and humiliation. In pity, Sir, forbear. The
tendency of your questions places before me
the full extent of my unhappy fate ; shows me
what I might have hoped, and what I must
renounce. Leave me, Mr. Compton, and pur-
sue your more fortunate lot : dark as mine may
be, I will share it to the last with my wretched
father ! Farewell ! return to the world — forget
that it contains such a place as Haelbeck, such

BRAMBLETYE HOUSE* 399

a being as myself; and I too, will endeavour
to for •" For a moment her feelings over-
came her, and she was unable to articulate the
remainder of the word, but instantly recover-
ing herself, and rapidly exclaiming — " Fare-
well ! farewell !" she hurried out of the apart-
ment.

END OF VOL. II.

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